A Little R&R
by Silver Bee
Summary: That's Rest and Recuperation, though Reading and Reviewing will be very much appreciated!  Scott and Virgil take a break from rescues to help a friend of Jeff's and protect the secret of International Rescue.
1. Chapter 1

_I started this story in January – before I got sidetracked by sequels and high school musicals – and finally it's finished! It's different to what I've done before, so I really hope it works._

Chapter One

Scott brought Thunderbird One to land on the dockside, Thunderbird Two still half an hour behind him. The howling wind and rain cut him to the quick as he opened the hatch and prepared to move out Mobile Control. _Great,_ he thought, _third time this week I'm going to be wet through._ A spate of unusually violent storms in Northern Europe had ensured a busy time for International Rescue. Scott felt exhausted and he knew that he wasn't the only one. Whilst Gordon and Alan had done their share, he and Virgil had borne the brunt of each rescue. It didn't help that the two of them had only just returned from a tricky rescue in Bolivia when the first of the calls from Europe came in. When the klaxon had sounded a couple of hours ago indicating yet another callout, this time in Scotland, he'd caught an uncharacteristic look of irritation on his middle brother's face. Truth be told, he'd felt the same way . _We can't go on like this, _he thought, fighting the wind to drag the equipment into the dockyard office.

In Thunderbird Two, Virgil gazed wearily through the cockpit window, only half listening to Gordon and Alan's chatter. His younger brothers were in a much brighter mood than he was, having managed at least twelve hours sleep over the past few days. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt this tired. Really Gordon should be flying whilst he took a short nap, but conditions were bad and whilst his head told him his brother was more than capable, his heart refused to allow him to trust his precious 'bird to anyone else in weather like this. Although the temperature inside the cabin was warm, the heavy rain slashing against the windows and the angry buffeting of the wind made him shiver in sympathy with the green craft.

"Mobile Control to Thunderbird Two."

"I read you, Scott. How's it looking down there?"

"Wet. Cold. Windy. The usual. Bet you can't wait to join me." Scott wasn't his usual smooth professional self.

"ETA twenty minutes. What's the situation?" Virgil hoped his brother was alone. It wouldn't do International Rescue's public image any good to have people thinking that they weren't exactly enthusiastic about the callout.

Virgil could hear the sigh as Scott pulled himself together. "Tell Gordon to get Thunderbird Four ready. The tourist sub is stuck at the bottom of the sea about a mile offshore. I don't know what they were thinking, going out in conditions like this. That thing is just a toy, it's not designed for extreme weather conditions. They've reported that oxygen is running low so we've got about thirty minutes to get them out. Can you get any more speed out of Two?"

"Not when this wind's trying to push me back home. I'll do what I can. Thunderbird Two out."

Gordon was already heading out of the cockpit towards the pod where Four lay waiting. Alan moved to join Virgil at the helm.

"Scott didn't sound his usual super-efficient self."

"He's okay, he's just tired. It's been a tough few weeks." Virgil automatically defended his brother.

"How are you doing?" Alan asked, aware that Virgil had had just as hard a time as Scott.

"Okay. Just wake me up if I fall asleep before we get there."

The hum of Thunderbird Two's engines changed to a whine as Virgil pushed them as far as they would go. He felt the ship shudder slightly under the strain and felt a momentary burst of anger at the idiots who had called him away from his comfortable bed and inflicted this punishment on his craft. Two's engines were going to need some maintenance, after this, he thought. He pushed his hair out of his eyes. It was getting long – he hadn't even had the chance to go to the mainland for a haircut recently and he'd tactfully rejected Grandma's offer to trim it herself. Like Scott, he wasn't exactly upholding International Rescue's code of efficiency, professionalism and good grooming at the moment. _I really need a break, _he thought, gripping the helm tighter as another strong gust buffeted the ship.

Virgil managed to make up a few minutes on his original ETA, dropping Pod 4 above the site of the stricken sub. He'd descended as low as he could, but the wind had caught the pod as it dropped and for one heart-stopping moment he'd thought that the pod might be blown over. Fortunately it had righted itself, but Gordon's colourful language suggested that it had been close. He didn't envy his brother fighting the stormy seas. Rising up to a safer height he prepared to hover ready for the pick-up, when a call came from Scott.

"Mobile Control to Thunderbird Two. Virgil, get yourself to the dock now. We've got a problem here. One of the cranes has started to topple. I'm sending the co-ordinates. You need to get a couple of clamps on it and keep it upright until we can move the ship next to it."

"FAB, Scott." Virgil was already turning Two around to head to shore.

Stabilising the crane was a fairly routine operation, but it was only the first of many. The manager of the dockyard was conspicuous by his absence, but Scott gathered from the men he spoke to that budget cuts and general poor management had led to a number of safety concerns. Now those concerns were being realised. It was the start of a busy few hours as cranes toppled, containers fell and ships broke free of their moorings. Normal emergency crews were overwhelmed, so Scott, Virgil and Alan worked at full stretch and once Gordon had completed the rescue from the sub he'd been pressed into service as well. The wind and rain refused to let up and all four brothers were cold, tired, wet and hungry. By the time everything seemed to be coming under control, Virgil and Scott in particular were almost asleep on their feet.

"Those crates look like they might be a problem, Virg. I'll go this way, you check the other side," Scott suggested. This was the last area to be checked and he thought that they might actually be finished in a short while. The prospect of a change of clothes and a warm dry Thunderbird was all that kept him going.

Gritting his teeth as the wind whipped icy rain into his face, Scott made for the pile of crates stacked precariously some twenty feet high. The chains which held them rattled ominouslyas the top row of crates shifted. Barely able to see through the driving rain, it was the sound which warned him that the stack was about to fall. He turned to get out of the way and enjoyed a moment's relief as he faced away from the rain. He had just begun to inform Alan of the situation when there was a sudden loud creaking and clanking. He barely had time to register the crates swaying wildly above him as a chain suddenly jerked loose and came spiralling towards him, followed by a few ropes and a couple of crates. There was no time to escape. One crate smashed just a few feet away from him as the other disappeared beneath the waves, but the chain hit him in the chest, throwing him into the churning water.

Winded by the blow, he had little breath in him as he plunged deep into the icy sea. Desperately he kicked towards the surface but something first held him back then began dragging him down. He looked down and felt a shock of sheer terror, realising that one of the ropes had wrapped itself around his leg. As the crate to which it was still attached plummeted to the seabed, Scott was dragged down with it. There was nothing he could do. What little strength he had ebbed away in the cold water. His lungs burned, desperate for air and his head throbbed painfully. The sound of the raging water and his own frantic heartbeat echoed in his ears. Everything was going black and he knew this was the end. Finally, unable to hold his breath any longer, he had to breathe in. The shock of the icy water revived him for a minute, cruelly awakening him to a desperate panic as he realised he was drowning.

Virgil had witnessed everything as he turned the corner of the stack of crates. He forced his tired limbs to move, racing down to the place where Scott had hit the water, calling his brothers as he did so, only pausing to remove his boots before diving in. The cold water took his breath away and for a few terrible seconds he thought his heart would stop. Then his body grudgingly accepted the cold and he could move again. Taking a massive breath he dived beneath the surface.

He saw his brother floating limply several feet below him and kicked towards him. Desperately he tried to pull Scott up, but something was holding him down. Despite his desperation to save his brother he had no option but to return to the surface for another breath. Diving down again, he swam around his brother's still body and spotted the rope. Drawing out his knife he slashed at it viciously then gripped Scott under his arms and made for the surface.

As he broke the surface he heard shouts above the roaring wind. Turning to face the dockside, all the while trying to keep his brother's head above water, he saw Alan waving anxiously at him. With the last of his strength he pulled Scott through the surging water towards his youngest brother. Alan dragged him onto the dockside, turning back to drag Virgil up too before beginning to work on Scott.

The cold water had actually saved Scott's life, slowing his vital functions down enough to ensure that the lack of oxygen and the water in his lungs didn't kill him. It was closer than Alan would have liked, though, and he had to breathe for his brother for a couple of minutes before Scott finally responded to the treatment. Virgil could do nothing to help, barely having the strength to sit upright.

Gordon came rushing to the scene, blankets and oxygen at the ready. He was relieved to see his eldest brother gasp in a great breath of air just as he reached his side. Grinning at Alan, he wrapped a blanket around his soaking, shivering brother before handing one to Virgil.

Scott rolled over onto his side, coughing weakly, trying to get the last of the salt water out of his lungs. He didn't have the strength to speak, but managed a weak smile for his brothers before closing his eyes again. Gordon patted his shoulder reassuringly.

"Come on, Scotty, take it easy. We need to get you into Two. There's a nice warm bed waiting for you in sickbay."

Scott didn't protest, a sure sign that he'd reached his breaking point, but he managed to get to his feet with help from Alan and shakily began moving back towards the big green 'bird.

Virgil collapsed back against the dockside, overwhelmed with relief at his brother's recovery. He was utterly spent. Freezing cold, soaking wet and, he thought, probably suffering from hypothermia, he couldn't do anything to help himself as Gordon hauled him to his feet and wrapped the blanket around him .

"Come on, Virg. Let's get you warm and dry too. We're done here. I'll fly Two back, you get some rest."

It was testimony to just how exhausted he was that the idea had a lot of appeal.

* * *

"You're sure they're okay?" Jeff Tracy was anxious. Injuries to his boys always alarmed him and whilst he maintained an aura of calm, inside he was frantic. News of Scott's narrow escape and Virgil's subsequent exhaustion worried him. He was aware of how much pressure his sons had been under recently. Thoughts of previous rescues flashed through his head as he considered just how much all his sons had endured in the years since he'd started International Rescue.

"Dad, they're fine, just exhausted. They can sleep it off on the way home." Gordon prepared Thunderbird Two for take-off, waiting for Alan to lift off in One.

"Okay, Gordon. Have a safe flight."

"Thanks, Dad. See you soon. Thunderbird Two out."

Scott and Virgil were feeling a lot better after sleeping all the way home and – as usual in these circumstances - were ready to play down their experiences, declaring emphatically that they were fine. Jeff was unconvinced however and sent them down to the infirmary where Brains was subjected to the usual indignant protests and lack of co-operation as he checked them out. Jeff came in as he was finishing up and was pleased to hear that neither were any the worse for their experiences.

"So can we go?" asked Scott.

"I-I've finished," said Brains. "You c-can go if you promise to t-take it easy."

"No arguments there, I just want to sleep," admitted Virgil.

The brothers hopped down from their respective beds and moved towards the door only to be stopped by their father.

"Not so fast, boys. Brains, can you get me a print-out of Scott and Virgil's medical records, please."

"Of c-course, Mr Tracy," Brains replied, disappearing into the office and returning in a few minutes with two files. Jeff's expression became grim as he flicked through the largest of them.

"Scott, how many times have you been hurt since we started International Rescue?" he asked.

"Uh, I don't know. A few," Scott said evasively.

"A few?" Jeff raised an eyebrow. "According to this file you've needed treatment on twenty seven different occasions."

"Well, you know, " Scott said lightly, "Some cuts and bruises are a bit of an occupational hazard."

"Hardly cuts and bruises, Scott. And as for you, Virgil..." he turned his attention to the other file.

"Well, at least mine isn't as thick as Scott's," the younger man said, casting a triumphant - if somewhat surprised - glance at his brother.

"Uh, a-actually, Virgil," said Brains, re-emerging from the office with another file. "That's just y-your record for the past t-two years. Th- this is your other file." He indicated the new file which was full to capacity and almost overflowing.

"Ah, right." Virgil frowned as Scott smirked across at him. Okay, so he sometimes got a bit scratched out on rescues, but then he was the one who did all the dirty work. He didn't see any point making a fuss, but since his father insisted that even the most minor cuts and bruises be documented, his file was bound to look a little bulky.

Jeff was flicking through the new file.

"Virgil, is there a single bone you haven't broken?" he finally asked, eyeing his son with a mixture of concern and incredulity.

Virgil thought for a while. "Uh... "

Brains tried to help him out. "W-well, Mr T-Tracy, I don't think Virgil has ever b-broken h-his nose."

"He has, actually," Scott laughed. "When he was fifteen."

"Hey, I didn't break it," Virgil protested. "Gordon did."

Jeff continued to peruse the file, his frown deepening as he relived memories of Virgil and Scott's many narrow escapes from death. He knew that the levity with which they dismissed their many injuries was just their way of coping with the stresses of their work. He also knew that they couldn't be allowed to carry on like this.

"Boys, laugh as much as you like. The fact remains that in the last few years both of your bodies have suffered more punishment than they were ever meant to take. I expected a few injuries when I started International Rescue, but nothing like this. You've been trapped under falling debris, poisoned, gassed, fallen off cliffs, blown up, beaten up ..." he ran out of ideas for a moment.

"D-drowned," Brains suggested helpfully, earning himself glares from both Scott and Virgil.

"Drowned," Jeff agreed. "Boys, if medical science hadn't advanced so much over the last twenty years you'd be dead ten times over. Enough is enough. You need a rest. As of now you're both grounded."

He sat back and waited for the protests. Sure enough, although just a few hours earlier both brothers had been thinking that they needed a break from International Rescue, they didn't like the sound of an enforced rest and their objections came thick and fast.

"Dad, we're far too busy at the moment. We can't both go on leave, the others wouldn't cope," Scott protested.

"Don't underestimate your brothers, Scott," Jeff warned him. "They've got you two out of plenty of dangerous situations in the past. We can always automate Five and bring John down if we need to. Brains and Tin-Tin could do with some more frontline experience and I can help out too if need be. I'm not past it yet!"

"But..."

"No, boys. I'm tired of seeing you hurt. I worry that one day your luck's going to run out and you're going to end up hurt so badly that you won't bounce back. That's all the more likely to happen if you go out on rescues when you're exhausted. No more arguments. You're out for the next two weeks. I want you rested and at peak fitness when you come back on duty."

"So what are we going to do? Sit around here watching whilst everyone else has all the fun?" Virgil asked.

"No, I think you should get away from the island. Take a holiday."

"You know we won't relax, we'll just worry about everyone," Scott pointed out.

"Well, it's your choice," Jeff said. "Two weeks R and R or two weeks moping about the house. I know which I'd choose." And with that he left them to it.

* * *

Back in his office, Jeff settled down to some Tracy Industries business. It was the sound of the vid-phone which roused him.

"Hello Bill," Jeff smiled at his old friend from his Air Force days. William Brand was now one of the most senior military advisors to the President. He was also one of International Rescue's most useful agents.

"Jeff." Brand didn't smile. In fact, Jeff couldn't recall a time he'd seen him look more stressed.

"What's wrong?"

"I need to talk to you – privately. Can I come out to the island?"

"Of course. I'll expect you sometime tomorrow."

"Actually I'm only a couple of hours away. I'm just refuelling."

"So you knew I wouldn't turn you down," Jeff laughed.

Once again Brand failed to return the smile. "No, I knew I couldn't give myself a chance to back out of this. See you soon, Jeff." He cut the phone link leaving a mystified Jeff to instruct Kyrano to make the necessary preparations for his guest. The more Jeff thought about it, the more anxious he became. Something was very wrong.


	2. Chapter 2

_Thanks for reviews and alerts. Forgot to put in a disclaimer last time – not mine, etc... _

Chapter Two

Bill Brand looked tired and drawn when he landed on Tracy Island. Only Gordon and Alan were there to greet him, Scott and Virgil having finally stopped complaining about being grounded and given in to the need for sleep. He managed a brusque greeting to the two youngest brothers before turning to Jeff.

"Let's go somewhere private."

With a surprised glance back at his sons Jeff led the way to his office.

"Okay, Bill, what's this all about?"

It was obvious that Bill was under a great deal of stress, but Jeff was even more worried by the fact that his friend seemed to be unable to look him in the eye.

"Bill?"

Bill continued to look down at the floor as he mumbled,

"I've done something stupid, Jeff."

"Go on," Jeff said wondering just where this was going.

"You know that last week I led a delegation to the World Peace Conference? Well, afterwards I stopped off in the Seychelles for a break. It was a spur of the moment decision. I've stayed at Bailey's before. I just thought it would be good to have a couple of days away from everything."

Jeff had never been to Bailey's but he knew the resort by reputation. If Bill had wanted a break after the stresses of the conference he couldn't have chosen a better place. Perhaps he should suggest it to Scott and Virgil, he thought, then realised that he still hadn't discovered what was bothering his friend. Bill was still staring at the floor and Jeff was surprised to see him blushing.

"The thing is, Jeff, I wasn't alone. One of my secretaries was with me. It was stupid, I know. We had separate rooms and I thought we'd been careful, but then yesterday the mail came and ..."

Jeff could see where this was going. He was disappointed in his friend. He knew his wife Sarah well and was godfather to their eldest daughter.

Bill continued. "They've got a video of us. They're threatening to go to the press if I don't pay up."

He looked Jeff in the eye for the first time as his words came out in an awkward rush. "It's not my job or my reputation I'm worried about, Jeff. I'll lose Sarah. I know I don't deserve her after what I've done, but I love her. I only realise how much now that I might lose her. I know I've been stupid – I've never done anything like this before. This thing with Stella – it's all over, I swear. I don't know what to do. I can't afford to pay them. I hate to ask, Jeff, but I need your help."

Jeff frowned. He couldn't believe his friend had been so foolish. For a moment he was ready to tell him to deal with this himself - after all, he'd been the cause of his own problems. But he thought about Sarah and how she would feel if she found out and then he thought about Lucy. He'd been lucky enough to meet the love of his life when he was young and, despite having been a widower for many years, he'd never wanted anyone else. It wasn't that he hadn't had the opportunity to meet someone, but no woman could ever replace his wife. In some ways he'd led a lonely life since Lucy's death, but his sons, his business and International Rescue were all he really wanted. He took a deep breath, thinking the situation over.

"Jeff, there's something else."

"What?"

"They obviously had cameras hidden in the room. Who knows how long they were recording. The tape they sent me - it's just of me and Stella, but if they've got more... Later on - after she'd gone - I put a call out to John about a training programme for the new agents. They may have that too. They could trace International Rescue through me."

Jeff was silent. His expression was grim as he considered the implications of Bill's words.

"What do they want?"

"Twenty thousand dollars. But it won't stop there, will it? They're going to want more."

"We're going to have to find out who's responsible. I assume it's someone who works at the hotel and has access to the rooms. It seems unlikely it could be a guest. Still, everyone who was at the hotel the same time as you will need to be checked out. I don't suppose you want the police involved?" Jeff already knew the answer to this.

"I can't risk it. It will finish me if this gets out, Jeff. If the press find out, any chance I have of working things out with Sarah will be gone. I can't even risk sending any of my own people down there – there's just no one I trust enough. I thought one of our agents might be able to help."

Jeff had been thinking along the same lines. With Bill's agreement he put in a call to England and briefed Penny on the situation. Although she didn't know the owner personally, they had a number of mutual friends. An hour later, Penny had some information for them.

"I spoke to Connie Hyatt and told her what's happened. Oh, don't worry Bill, I didn't mention any names. She was shocked, obviously – and I don't think she's pretending. She agrees with us that one of the hotel staff must be responsible. We're welcome to come and investigate. Actually, it seems that some strange things have been happening at Bailey's."

"What's been going on?" Jeff knew Connie Hyatt by reputation. She had been a popular jazz singer for many years and was a personal favourite of his. A year ago she had married her third husband, Max Bailey, a wealthy businessman who owned a large, luxurious hotel in the Seychelles. Following his death six months later, she had retired from music and taken over the running of the place herself. It had always been popular, renowned for its plush accommodation and top of the range facilities, but with Connie in charge the resort had become the destination of choice for the rich and famous. Bailey's was well-known for its excellent entertainment and Connie still occasionally sang for the guests.

Jeff let his thoughts drift back to a night twenty-five years earlier. Exhausted by the demands of parenting two young sons, he and Lucy had persuaded his mother to babysit for a long weekend. They'd spent the last evening in a smoky jazz club, enthralled by the performance of the young woman who was making quite a name for herself. Later, Connie's songs playing softly in the background, they'd taken full advantage of the final night's break from their boys. Lucy had discovered she was pregnant a few weeks later and Jeff was almost certain that Virgil had been conceived that night.

"Jeff?" Penny's voice brought him back to reality.

"I'm sorry, Penny. You were telling me about Connie's problems?"

"Yes, over the past few months there have been a number of incidents: just minor damage at first, plus a number of thefts, both from guests and from the bar and restaurant. But lately it's become more serious. A guest was hurt when a balcony railing gave way. One of the cleaners was electrocuted by some faulty equipment. Then last night one of the lifeguards was found badly beaten. There was also a fire in the staff quarters and one of the hotel musicians has gone missing."

"What do the police say?" Jeff asked.

"They're mystified. They haven't been able to question the lifeguard yet. Of course if they don't know about the blackmail they may not be able to ask the right questions anyway. They haven't been able to catch the thief and as far as the other incidents go, there's no evidence of foul play so they seem inclined to blame poor maintenance on the part of the hotel. Connie disagrees, of course."

"So, it looks as though someone has a grudge against Bailey's. What about the two men involved in the trouble last night, Penny? Do you think they're involved?" Jeff asked.

"It would seem too great a coincidence otherwise, don't you think?" Penny replied. "Connie is sending me their details – perhaps John could look into them for me."

"You know, I've been thinking," Bill suddenly interjected. "It's hard to believe I'm the only one to be caught out. If they've bugged all the rooms there could be a lot of anxious people with a lot to lose. Maybe someone else is trying to find our blackmailer too. In which case they might have already been dealt with. I could be off the hook." He seemed brighter than he'd been since he arrived, though Jeff's response soon brought him back down to earth.

"But the tapes of you are still out there somewhere. We can't take anything for granted, Bill. International Rescue isn't safe just yet and neither are you. What do you think, Penny?"

"I agree, Jeff. I've decided to go and investigate myself." Penny said. "Parker and I leave for Bailey's in the morning. How much time do we have, Bill?"

"They want the money by tomorrow afternoon. Jeff is going to give it to me," he looked shamefacedly at his friend, "but I can't believe that will be the end of it. Even if they give me the tape there's nothing to stop them having copies. I'll never be safe until we catch them."

"And of course we need to make sure that they don't know anything about International Rescue. Jeff, Bailey's is a big place with a lot of staff. I could do with some reinforcements on this one. Shall I call on some of our local agents?"

"Actually, Penny, I know a couple of boys who need a change of scene and who might be ideally qualified to help you out." Jeff smiled, thinking things had worked out nicely. He'd get Scott and Virgil away from International Rescue for a while but his boys would still be able to feel useful. Plus it would save him from having to listen to their constant complaints about being grounded.

They discussed details for a while then Penny signed off, promising to get back to him once she'd spoken to Connie.

At dinner the boys noticed that Bill wasn't his usual cheery self, but Scott and Virgil were too annoyed to give it much thought. After the meal they prepared to head to the lounge to continue sulking in comfort, but they were stopped by their father who asked them to join him in his office. With a quick glance at Bill who avoided his eye, instead staring fixedly out of the window, Jeff told them the whole story.

"Boys, you understand this goes no further?"

Scott and Virgil both nodded in agreement. Both were glad to have something to occupy their time while they were resting.

"So what do you want us to do? Pretend to be guests and snoop around?" Scott asked.

"Not exactly," said Jeff, "Penny will be there as a guest. But it seems that the culprit may be on the staff. That's where you two come in. You're going to work at Bailey's, boys. Scott, you can easily get by as a lifeguard. Virgil – the hotel needs a pianist and someone to play with the band."

"What? I'm not good enough for that."

"Of course you are. Anyway, Connie will soon tell you if she doesn't think you're up to it," Penny said.

"Tell me?"

"Yes, she'll be calling in about five minutes to hear you play," Jeff informed him.

"What? I can't audition now. I haven't prepared anything. I haven't warmed up. " Virgil's nervousness at playing in front of anyone other than close friends and family was legendary and Jeff had deliberately given him little time to worry.

"Just play anything, you'll be fine," Scott assured him as they headed for the lounge.

"Fine won't be good enough, Scott," Virgil muttered, diving to his piano and frantically searching through some music, throwing page after page recklessly onto the floor. His father took it all away from him and sat him down on the stool.

"Just play whatever comes into your head. Penny's already played her some of the recordings you did for her and she liked them. She just wants to hear a live performance."

Connie Hyatt turned out to be an intimidating woman in her early fifties who was obviously as much at home running a business as standing in front of an audience. She had always had a reputation as something of a diva and it was immediately clear that she would stand for no nonsense. Whilst grateful for the prospect of help, she was obviously not prepared to allow amateurs to spoil her resort's reputation. More nervous than ever, Virgil took a deep breath before beginning.

Sure enough Connie was impressed with Virgil's impromptu audition. When he finished she nodded appreciatively, then said unexpectedly,

"Well your playing's certainly good enough. Let's have a look at you then."

With some surprise Virgil approached the vid-screen, feeling a little self-conscious as the woman scrutinised him closely before nodding,

"Yes, I think you'll do very well. Now then, what about your brother? Come on, let's see if you're up to scratch.

Scott submitted himself to the same process as Virgil, exchanging a bemused glance with his brother. It wasn't exactly unusual for women to be checking him out, but most managed to do it with a little more subtlety. However, he was unprepared for her next request.

"Shirt off, please – after all, you'll be spending your time at the pool." Virgil turned away to hide his laughter as Jeff, despite his surprise, instructed Scott to comply. Scott looked embarrassed as Connie indicated that she liked what she saw.

"Okay boys, I think you match up to my hotel's standards. My secretary will send you all the information you need and I'll see you in a couple of days."

She suddenly added with a smile,

"Oh, by the way, thank you. I don't know exactly what's going on but I know it's going to ruin my hotel if it's not stopped. I'll give you all the help you need."

"Leave it to Penny and the boys, Connie," said Jeff, ending the call.

"What was that all about?" Scott asked, pulling his shirt back on.

"Oh, Scott," smiled Penny. "It's obvious you've never been to Bailey's. Connie's very particular about her hotel's image. Every member of staff is exceptionally attractive – it's one of the selling points of the resort. How do you think it manages to attract such a clientele? Of course, it's a pity one can't say the same for some of the guests."

"Well," said Jeff, trying to focus on business, but unable to hide his glow of fatherly pride, "It looks as though you're on, boys. It's just what you need. You can have a break from the old routine, recharge your batteries and you'll still be helping International Rescue. So how about we tell your brothers what's going on?"

The others were intrigued and, in Gordon's case, a little jealous.

"Shouldn't I go as the lifeguard?" he asked. "I'm a better swimmer than Scott."

"Yes, but people might recognise you and wonder why Gordon Tracy, Olympic gold medallist, is slumming it as a lifeguard," Alan pointed out. "Whereas no one will know who Scott is. Anyway, he can pose by the pool just as well as you. He's only there to watch the girls and show off his muscles."

"Yeah," said Gordon sulkily. "So why do you think I want to do it?"


	3. Chapter 3

_Thanks so much for all the feedback - I really do appreciate it! I'm glad the humour in the story seems to be coming across - I was a bit worried about that side of it. It's been fun to write something a bit different and it's reassuring to know people are enjoying it. Thanks again! Bee_

Chapter Three

The following morning emails arrived for both Scott and Virgil. Scott's was fairly brief, containing just a list of hotel regulations and requests for first aid and life saving certificates. Virgil's however, included several attachments containing details of all the music he would be expected to perform. He frowned as he read through the information Connie had provided.

"How's it looking?" Jeff asked, seeing his expression.

"Well, I can play what I want in the bar. That's no problem. And I think the accompaniment for the singer on Friday will be okay. I know most of the pieces and since it's just the two of us we can wing it if we need to. But Saturday looks like a nightmare. It's a long time since I've played with a band and there's a lot of keyboard, not just piano. There's a lot to learn." With that he left for his studio, determined to master the tricky keyboard material in the little time he had available. They didn't see him for the rest of the day.

Bill spent a nervous few hours waiting to see if the instructions for paying the money arrived. He'd done his best to convince himself that someone had already put a stop to the blackmailing, but when just before lunch an email arrived giving details of the account to which the money should be sent – and asking for a further ten thousand dollars – he had to agree with Jeff that it was far from over.

"They're taking a risk upping the demands like that, though," Scott said.

"Maybe they're running scared after what happened the other night," his father mused. "Perhaps they're going all out for as much as they can get whilst they still can. One thing's for sure, though. Whether or not the men you boys are replacing were involved, they weren't the only ones."

"John hasn't had any luck with the list of staff Connie gave him. But then that just means no one's been caught doing anything wrong. I'll be glad when Virg and I are there to really see what's going on."

"Well, you boys be careful," Jeff said. "One man is hurt and another is missing, plus there have been those 'accidents' around the hotel. I meant for the two of you to relax, not put yourselves in danger."

"We'll be fine, Dad," Scott assured him. He wasn't surprised though when his father didn't look convinced.

Scott rose early as usual the next day. As he entered the lounge he realised that despite the dawn light, a lamp was still on. He frowned as he caught sight of Virgil asleep on the piano stool, his head resting awkwardly on the side of the piano. His father entered the room behind him.

"I thought this was supposed to be a rest," Scott murmured, not wanting to wake his brother. "I don't think he's worked so hard since his last year of college."

Jeff walked over to his son and shook his shoulder gently. Virgil stirred and looked up at him sleepily.

"Come on, son," Jeff said, pulling him onto his feet. "Wake up and go to bed! You've got time for a few hours sleep before you leave for Bailey's."

Penny contacted them a few hours later to give them a progress report. Virgil was still asleep, so Scott and Jeff took the call.

"I've scanned my room for cameras and listening devices and sure enough they're there. I can deactivate them at any time of course, but I don't want to put our blackmailers on their guard. It's quite an unpleasant feeling, though, knowing that someone could be watching your every move."

"I can imagine," said Jeff. "So, what's the plan, Penny?"

"Well, I'm going to meet with Connie to get some more information. But, it seems to me that there might be an easy way to get the attention of our blackmailers."

"What did you have in mind?" Jeff asked.

"I believe I should present myself as a target for blackmail. I have my grandmother's engagement ring amongst my jewels and I have to say it's extremely hard to miss. I've been wearing it since I arrived. Perhaps an unfaithful fiancée could give our blackmailers – or our thieves – something to work with."

"That could work. After all there was that report Tin-Tin spotted in the gossip columns the other day. They seemed to think you were getting very close to some lord or other," Scott teased.

"Now, Scott, Lord Ramsey and I are merely friends. That we happen to jointly own a racehorse and attended Wimbledon and Henley together is simply coincidence. However, it seems that it might work to our advantage. "

"So what are you going to do? You can't be thinking of picking up someone at the hotel?" Jeff asked with a glance at Scott.

"Of course not, Jeff. I thought perhaps one of the boys could oblige."

"Well, Penny," said Scott, not quite sure about all of this. "What exactly do you want us to do? I mean, I'll do a lot for International Rescue, but I'm not exactly sure that includes starring in an x-rated blackmail video."

"Well, of course not, Scott," Penny said, blushing a little. "I'm sure we can give them enough material to work with without things getting out of hand."

Scott looked at his father, who returned his gaze impassively. _It's up to you_, his eyes seemed to be saying.

"Are you sure about this, Penny?" Scott asked. "I mean, those gossip columnists might tell the world that you go around picking up stray hotel employees for a bit of holiday fun."

"Scott, darling, if my reputation must suffer in order to catch these blackmailers and protect International Rescue, then that is the price I must pay. I'm sure you, Virgil and Parker will be more than happy to defend my honour should the need arise."

"Okay, Penny. I guess I could volunteer Virgil as he's not here to argue, but I think he'll have enough on his plate with rehearsals for the next couple of days without getting picked up by a thrill-seeking aristocrat. I guess I'm your man."

Penny smiled. "Thank you, Scott, I'm sure that will be delightful."

* * *

Scott and Virgil arrived at Bailey's later that day. John had done a sterling job of arranging new identities for them and their documentation identified them as Scott and Virgil Tanner. Penny was drinking coffee in the lobby when they arrived, though she didn't acknowledge their arrival, being too busy showing off her engagement ring to the woman in the chair next to her. They weren't exactly intimidated by extravagant shows of wealth, but both Scott and Virgil looked around the marble reception area with some awe. Scott spotted a member of the latest popular girl band sitting on a chair in the corner whilst a couple of famous actors were checking in. So far it seemed that life at Bailey's continued as normal, though it would surely only be a matter of time before word got out about the blackmail plots, especially if any of these high-profile guests became involved.

Connie Hyatt greeted them in her office looking anxious. "Lady Penelope has told me about the cameras and microphones she found. I can only assume they're in all the rooms. I wanted her to get rid of them but she thinks it will be easier to catch our blackmailers if they're not on their guard."

"She's right," said Virgil. "And the damage has been done now. They've probably got plenty of material to keep themselves going. And as for being on their guard... If your old lifeguard and pianist were involved they're already in enough trouble."

"I can't believe it," Connie said. "How long has it been going on? There's never been any hint of anything like this. And on top of everything else... It seems as though someone is out to ruin my hotel. I just don't understand it. "

"Well, we're here to help now," Scott reassured her. "What can you tell us about the men we're replacing?"

"Well, Vince Ferdinand is the lifeguard. He's a nice boy, not too bright, but good at his job. I know he has something of a reputation with women, but I can't believe he'd be mixed up in something like this. He was in such a bad way when we found him, though. Someone must have had a reason to hurt him so badly. Rob Hall on the other hand... He plays piano wonderfully, but he's not the nicest of men. There's always been a hard edge to him. I could believe he was involved, but I don't see how he or Vince could get into the rooms without help. Someone else has to be working with them."

"Okay," said Virgil. "We'll liaise with Penny. Perhaps we should get down to work."

"I'll introduce you to Richard Bridges, my manager. He doesn't know who you really are – no one does except for me - so you'd better get into role." She pressed a button on the intercom and asked her secretary to have Bridges report to her office. A harassed-looking man in his forties soon arrived, blatantly failing to give any signs of being pleased to see them, though outwardly at least he was perfectly civil. Scott guessed he was feeling the pressure too as he shook hands with them and took them on a tour of the hotel. They then returned to Bridges' office where he called in other members of staff to brief them on their duties.

"Scott, this is David Bradley, chief lifeguard. He'll show you to the pool." Scott shook hands with his new colleague, relieved when he smiled broadly and expressed his delight at once again having a full complement of lifeguards.

A tap on the door made the men turn around. A young red-haired woman dressed in shorts and a cropped shirt came in. Both Tracy brothers immediately thought that she was one of the most beautiful women they had ever seen. Grandma wouldn't have approved, but to Scott and Virgil, stuck on an island with only their grandmother and their brother's girlfriend for female company, any woman, let alone one as attractive as Amy, was a welcome distraction.

"Ah, Amy." Even Bridges seemed to be affected. "Amy is our singer. Virgil, you'd better start practising if you're going to be ready for tomorrow night's show. Amy will show you to the rehearsal room. I take it you'll be okay to play in the bar tonight?"

"I'll be fine," Virgil said vaguely, unable to take his eyes off the girl who was smiling at him brightly. Scott felt a momentary flash of jealousy at the thought of his brother closeted away with the girl for the rest of the afternoon, then thought that at least Virgil would have something to take his mind off his nerves. He'd been worrying about that night's performance all through their flight - at least when he wasn't winding up Scott about his impending fling with Penny - but now Scott doubted his brother would be thinking of anything other than his practice with Amy.

"Hi Virgil," Amy said. "Let's go, we've got a lot of practising to do." She led Virgil away. Scott and Dave followed, both watching the other two as they moved away.

"Don't bother," Dave said, noticing the expression on Scott's face. "Our Amy's only interested in musicians. And she's got a particular soft spot for pianists. Your brother's going to have his hands full. Rob did – I can't believe he'd disappear like that when he had a girl like Amy."

"He disappeared?" Scott played dumb, wondering what the Dave would have to say.

"Yeah, there was a fire in his room but no sign of him. It's weird – coming at the same time poor Vince was attacked. Something's not right in this place."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, there've been a few accidents. Too many to be a coincidence if you ask me."

"You think someone's got a grudge against Miss Hyatt?" Scott asked.

"Oh, plenty of people have grudges against Connie. She can be pretty demanding. Since she took over the place she's changed everything. She weeded out the timewasters pretty quickly – quite a few people lost their jobs. There was a lot of resentment for a while, but it seemed to have settled down."

That gave Scott something to think about as they made their way down to the pool.

When they arrived Dave began to run through Scott's duties. As he listened he noticed Penny arrive and settle herself onto a sun-lounger next to the lifeguard's chair.

"Your shift starts in ten minutes," Dave said, glancing at his watch. "You'd better get changed."

"Okay," Scott agreed, following Dave into the lifeguard's offices. He was allocated a locker next to one labelled 'V Ferdinand'.

"So what did happen to the guy I'm replacing?" Scott asked.

"Someone beat him up. He's in a bad way."

"Jealous husband?" Scott asked, thinking he might as well probe the blackmail angle.

"Well, knowing Vince that's not a bad guess, but even so, it's not the kind of thing you expect at a place like this. Right, you'd better get moving. Connie expects her staff to be punctual." With that he left Scott to get changed.

Scott spent a pleasant afternoon at the pool. As Gordon had suspected, the job gave him lots of time to admire the women who lay on the loungers. Several asked him to help apply suntan lotion and he smiled as he did so, enjoying his task and knowing just how jealous his younger brother would be when he told him all about it. Penny engaged him in casual conversation for a while but they agreed to talk properly later when Virgil could join them. It was a pleasant afternoon and Scott found himself enjoying his break from International Rescue. He wondered how Virgil was getting on.

Virgil was having a wonderful time! A piano, good music, a beautiful woman... Actually, just the novelty of a conversation with someone he wasn't related to or which didn't contain the words 'Help!' or 'FAB!' was good enough for him. The fact that Amy was so lovely to look at was an added bonus as far as he was concerned. He didn't miss International Rescue at all. He'd even forgotten all about getting information about the missing Rob Hall until Amy broached the subject herself.

"I'm glad Connie got someone to fill in for Rob. I can't believe he'd walk out on us like that."

"What happened?" Virgil knew she had no idea that he'd already been briefed on the situation.

"I don't know. The first time I knew anything was wrong was when the fire alarms went off. When I found out it was Rob's room and he was missing I thought... Anyway, they say he wasn't in his room, but I've no idea where he's gone. I've tried calling him but there's no answer."

Virgil wondered just what their relationship had been.

"You were close to him?"

She looked at him for a moment. "Well, for a while. I tried to break it off. But he was kind of possessive. It was hard to get away from him though, working together in the band. He never quite got the message it was over. That's why I thought he'd be in touch. He couldn't leave me alone before he ran off. It's strange, especially happening the same time as Vince was attacked."

"You don't think he was involved in that?"

"No, not Rob. He and Vince were friends. He'd have no reason to hurt him."

"What do you think happened then?" Virgil asked.

"I really don't know. This place has changed though. I worked here last summer and the atmosphere was completely different. I doubt the guests have noticed, but the staff haven't been too happy since Connie took over. She's changed a lot of things. Probably for the better – it wasn't the most well-run place before. But she's upset so many people these past few months. Especially Richard Bridges. He was Max Bailey's nephew and I think he expected to inherit the place when he died. It must have been a bit of a shock when Max married Connie and left everything to her. I don't think he's too fond of her. He pretty much ran the place before Max died, but since Connie took over she's kind of sidelined him. No one's job is safe, his least of all. I'm guessing there will be more trouble before the summer's over."

"Trouble?"

"Silly things. People arguing, things going wrong. I don't know... There's something about Bailey's now which gives me the creeps. And with Rob gone... I'm glad you're here, Virgil. At least the band won't fall apart. Do you know Connie well? She told us you were a friend."

"Well, more of a friend of a friend. But I had a couple of weeks spare and I'm happy to help out."

"You're good too. Just as well. Rob ran this band so most of our songs are heavy on piano or keyboard."

"I've noticed," Virgil sighed. "I'm never going to be ready for Saturday."

"You'll be fine. The others will help you out. We've got all day tomorrow and Saturday afternoon to work things out. But Miguel – he's the guitarist - he'll be happy to take over. He and Rob used to argue all the time. At least we'll be spared that tomorrow."

Virgil had plenty to think about as they moved onto the next song. So Rob Hall and Vince Ferdinand had been friends? It seemed that their first job should be to find the missing pianist. But whether he'd disappeared of his own accord or was in the hands of whoever had attacked Vince Ferdinand was a mystery. He hoped Penny and Scott would come up with something more.


	4. Chapter 4

_Sorry it's a bit late – it's been a busy week. Thanks as always for all the support with this story – hope you like this chapter too. Bee_

Chapter Four

Lady Penelope smiled approvingly at the handsome young man on the reception desk as she slipped past him and made her way to Connie's office. _Yes,_ she thought, _Connie certainly knows how to pick her staff._ As she approached the office she heard raised voices – Connie's and an unknown man's. Coming to a halt, she listened with interest as an argument developed.

"Honestly, Connie, you can't just hire staff without my say-so."

"I think you'll find I can do what I like in MY hotel," came the sharp retort. "Don't worry, Richard, they're perfectly qualified."

"That's not the point, is it? It's my job to hire the staff. I don't appreciate being ignored."

"I'm not ignoring you. We needed people to fill in quickly and these two were available. They come highly recommended by a friend of mine."

"Ever since you took over this place you've been taking over my job. What's wrong? Don't you think I'm good enough to run things? I did alright when Max was alive."

"Yes, I know you did. And Max was satisfied. But I'm not Max. I'm sorry, Richard, but I like to take a more hands-on approach. We can't stand still, you know. I've got plenty of ideas to develop Bailey's."

"I've run this hotel for years." Richard Bridges' voice was angry now. "You never took any interest until you inherited it. Now all of a sudden you want to be the one in control. Well you know nothing about running a hotel."

I'll run my hotel any way I like!" Connie snapped. "That includes hiring and firing the staff – ALL of them. Richard, I'm tired of having these conversations with you. I'd like you on board, but if you're not happy then perhaps you should look elsewhere for employment."

"What? Are you firing me?"

"No, Richard, just giving you a friendly warning. It's not a good idea to shout at your employer. My ways are different to Max's. I'm afraid you'll just have to get used to them. Now, if you don't mind, I'm expecting someone."

Bridges came charging through the door, almost knocking Penny over. She caught a glimpse of the furious look on his face as she regained her balance and made her way into Connie's office. _Interesting__, _she thought. _If we're looking for someone with a grudge against Connie it seems we've found just the person. _

* * *

It wasn't until later that evening that Scott and Virgil got the chance to talk properly.

"So, how are you getting along with Amy?" Scott asked. Never mind the mystery of the blackmailer, there were more important things on his mind right now – like annoying his brother.

"Fine. She's been really helpful. I don't think there will be any problems tomorrow night."

Scott couldn't help the smirk that crept over his face. "Well, if you need any tips..."

"No offence, Scott, but I don't think you could give me much help with the piano – oh..." He realised what his brother had really meant. "Actually, I don't need any help there either. I already know her name, unlike some people I could mention."

"Once!" Scott protested, annoyed at the way his brother had turned the tables on him so neatly. "Once, I get drunk and can't remember a girl's name and you never let me forget it."

Virgil laughed, relieved at having moved the subject away from Amy. It was a momentary respite, however, as he looked at his watch and fought back yet another wave of terror at the thought of playing the piano in public.

Scott watched in amusement as Virgil began to pace up and down their room glancing at his watch every few seconds. Finally taking pity on his brother he took him out for a walk in order to distract him before escorting him to the bar. Making sure that Virgil was safely in position at the piano, he set off to find Penny. He found her sitting out on the terrace and he took a moment to get back into the role of Scott Tanner, opportunistic lifeguard, turning on what he hoped was a charming yet slightly predatory smile as he approached the blonde aristocrat. They'd decided to take things slowly, waiting a couple more days before trying to trap the blackmailers, but it made sense to build up to things and give any watchers the heads-up that there might be something worth their while.

Their plans were almost ruined right at the start though as Scott prepared to escort Lady Penelope into the bar. A frowning figure stepped in front of him.

"Staff aren't allowed in the public areas when they're off-duty." It was Bridges, looking cheerfully officious as he blocked Scott's way into the bar. Scott was about to say something about needing to support his brother when Penny spoke up.

"Oh, Mr Bridges, Scott is with me," she said, fixing him with a charming smile. "After all, one must have an escort for the evening."

Bridges stepped back, with an, "Of course, Lady Penelope, anything to keep our guests happy," which Penny accurately translated as: _Just because you've got a title you think you can do what you like. Got a thing for lifeguards have you? Who'd have thought it?_

"Well, there goes your reputation, Penny," Scott laughed as he led her to a quiet table tucked away in the corner of the room.

"As we intended," Penny replied calmly.

"I'll get you a drink." Scott turned to the bar.

"Actually, Scott, I believe I should be the one providing the refreshments. After all, I'm the Lady, you, on the other hand, are the poorly paid lifeguard out for a good time."

"Whatever you say," Scott laughed, calling for a waitress. When the champagne bucket and two glasses were set down in front of them he took her hand and smiled, a mischievous glint in his eye. "So, just how far do we go?"

Penny allowed him to keep hold of her hand for a moment then pulled it away,

"For now, not too far – after all, I'm meant to be a respectable woman enjoying a short break before settling down. In a couple of days, however..." They both grew quiet as they reflected on their plan.

They settled down to enjoy Virgil's playing. Scott had deliberately kept away from Virgil's line of sight, knowing how nervous his brother was feeling and not wanting to put him off. He also didn't want his brother to notice him activate his watch and open a link to John in Thunderbird Five. John would transmit the performance to those back on Tracy Island, first clearing out any background chatter. Because of this, Penny and Scott said little beyond some appreciative comments about Virgil, though occasionally their eyes would meet and they would smile longingly at each other, aware of the need to make their own performance convincing.

Virgil played well, soon becoming so engrossed in his music that he grew oblivious to his surroundings. The applause at the end of each piece reminded him, though, and he smiled in shy acknowledgement before moving onto the next one. Connie came in halfway through, giving an approving nod before leaving. Finally the evening drew to a close. Virgil finished his last piece and Scott and Penny stood up, intending to go over to congratulate him. But before they could do so, Amy appeared, sitting herself down beside Virgil on the piano stool.

"Looks like Virgil's a bit busy at the moment," Scott said, not wanting to interrupt.

"Yes, it seems he's enjoying his holiday," Penny commented. "I'm sorry that I'm preventing you from taking the same opportunity. Perhaps when all this is over you'll be able to enjoy yourself a little more. The waitress seemed quite interested..."

Scott had to admit to feeling a little jealous of his brother at that moment. Still, as Penny had pointed out, there were plenty of pretty girls around and he still had time.

"Not to worry. I've still got a couple of weeks."

Penny smiled. "Well, perhaps you had better escort me back to my room."

They walked quietly through the corridors to Penny's room. When they reached her door, for the benefit of any cameras which might be watching them Scott moved in for a kiss, only for a seemingly bashful Penny to move away. They talked for a moment before Penny retreated into her room with an apologetic smile, closing the door with apparent reluctance. Scott hovered outside the room for a moment, apparently hoping she'd reconsider and open the door, before walking away. Not a bad start, he thought.

In her room, mindful of the cameras, Penny had changed into her nightclothes in the bathroom, the one area mercifully free of bugs. Returning to her bedroom she sat down on the bed, picking up her phone and dialling a number. She then spent several minutes telling her own answering machine at Foxley-Heath about the lovely young lifeguard who was kind enough to keep her company as she'd listened to the new pianist. Finally informing her 'friend' of her doubts over her engagement she hung up, hoping her staff would obey her instructions and ignore any messages they saw waiting for her. She could only imagine their confusion if they thought their mistress had not only acquired a fiancé but was also apparently falling for a lifeguard. She just hoped the blackmailers would take the bait.

Turning out the light she made plans for the following day. Her first task would be a visit to the hospital to talk to Vince Ferdinand. She hoped Parker had brought all the things she'd need in order for her to be able to get in to see him. She'd been informed he was under police guard, just in case his attackers returned, but she was guessing the police knew nothing of any blackmail plot. She'd have to tread carefully to get the lifeguard to give up anything he knew. But then she'd always enjoyed a challenge.

* * *

"Good job, Virg," said Scott when his brother returned to the room they shared. "I would have come over to tell you but I didn't want to interrupt you and Amy. You two seem to be getting along well."

"Yeah, she's been really helpful."

"Did you find out any more about Rob Hall?" Scott asked, hoping his brother's mind had been at least partially focused on their mission.

"Amy doesn't know much about him really. She said he was always a bit reluctant to talk about himself. She does know he worked in a hotel in Vegas before he came here. I've given John the details."

"Well, you meet the rest of the band tomorrow, don't you? Maybe they'll have some more information."

Virgil went pale. "Don't remind me. I'm dreading it. I'm nowhere near ready for Saturday and then there's the accompaniment for Amy tomorrow. I thought Dad wanted me to rest – I've never been this stressed before, not even on a rescue."

Scott laughed. He'd normally be worried if Virgil – or any of his brothers – admitted to being stressed, but he'd seen his brother like this too many times to be anything other than amused.

"How did things go with Penny, anyway?" Virgil asked, desperate to change the subject.

"It all went to plan. Felt pretty strange though, I can tell you. I hope we did enough to get our blackmailer's interest. Bridges saw us together, so if he is involved he's got something to work with. Say, Virg, Penny overheard him having a shouting match with Connie Hyatt this afternoon. I told her what Amy said about him expecting to inherit the hotel. She agrees he's a likely candidate for the problems Connie's been having. He must be pretty resentful. See what people have to say about him tomorrow."

"If he's got a grudge against Connie he'd be perfectly placed to do something about it. He's got a master key to all the rooms, not to mention having access to all the guests' contact details," Virgil pointed out.

"He's definitely our first line of enquiry. Meet me at lunchtime tomorrow. Connie's going to get him out of the way for us. We need to bug his office."

"Okay, if I can get away from practice."

"Virg, even musicians have to eat. Come to think of it, what have you had today? I know what you're like when you're nervous about a performance."

"I'm okay. Amy took me to dinner." No need to tell Scott that he'd been too worked up to actually eat anything.

"Oh well, as long as she's looking after you." Scott hesitated for a moment. "You know, she's got quite a reputation. You'd better be careful."

"Don't worry, Scott. I'm capable of looking after myself. Anyway, Rob's only been gone two days."

"From what Dave was saying that's a day longer than she usually needs."

"Jealous?" Virgil teased. "Just because I'm in with a chance with Amy whilst you can only pretend with Penny."

"In with more than a chance I'd have thought. Though what her boyfriend will say if he turns up again is anyone's guess."

"He's not her boyfriend anymore, so as far as that goes..."

"Oh, you go as far as you like," Scott smiled. "Dad told us to have some fun as well as helping Penny. Looks like you've got a head start."

"You _are_ jealous," Virgil had to laugh.

"Just be careful. You know what you're like." Scott was generally happy to flit from one girl to the next. Virgil tended to form more serious attachments.

Virgil sighed. "We're only here for two weeks, Scott."

"I know," Scott was serious for a moment. "But it's not easy, is it, being stuck on the island... If you get the chance to have a good time you take it. I certainly intend to."

"With Penny?" Virgil asked, enjoying the chance to tease Scott for a change.

"No!" Scott was aghast at the suggestion. "That's going to be weird. In fact, if you'd like to take over there I won't stop you."

"No thanks," Virgil laughed. "She's all yours."

* * *

It was the sound of the fire alarm which woke them a few hours later. Stumbling out of bed, half-asleep and totally disorientated, thinking he'd been called out for a rescue then realising he wasn't in his room on the island, it took Virgil a moment to remember where he was. Reaching clumsily for the light switch, he collided with Scott who had typically snapped into full wakefulness the moment the alarm went off and was already dressed and ready to go.

"Come on, Virg – wake up! We need to get outside."

Virgil hurriedly dressed before following Scott out to the fire assembly point. They spotted Penny, immaculate in pink silk, with Parker hovering nearby, less than immaculate in rumpled paisley pyjamas and a spotted dressing gown. Heading over to them they couldn't help overhearing the grumbles of the guests, unhappy at a second night's rest interrupted by a fire alarm.

"Lady Penelope, good to see you," Scott said loudly, mindful of the need to keep in character. He smiled lecherously at her much to Virgil's amusement and Parker's disgust. Dropping his voice he whispered, "What's going on? Anyone in trouble?"

"I'm not sure, Scott," she replied. "There was no sign of a fire that I could detect."

"Nothing in the staff quarters either," Virgil told her.

"Let's hope no one's hurt this time," Scott said, gazing over at the hotel to look for smoke or flames, relieved when he spotted neither.

At that moment the alarms cut out and Connie appeared, apologising for what had turned out to be a false alarm. Staff and guests began to disperse, relieved to be able to return to their beds. Scott, Virgil, Penny and Parker stayed where they were for a moment, hoping for a word with Connie, who at that moment was interrogating Bridges about the alarm system. His replies were non-committal, infuriating Connie who launched into a blistering rant about his inadequacies as a manager. Bridges said little, though the fury and resentment in his eyes was obvious. When Connie had finished and turned away, all four watchers noticed a sly, satisfied smile appear on his face as he watched her leave.

"He had something to do with this alright," Virgil said.

"We're going to need more than a smile to prove it though," Scott pointed out. "Let's hope we get some real evidence tomorrow."

"Today," Penny pointed out with a yawn. "It's nearly 4am."

Scott groaned. "I've got an early shift. Some rest this is turning out to be. Come on, let's get back to bed."

Scott and Virgil muttered a 'goodnight' to Bridges as they set off back to their room. The manager barely acknowledged them, grunting something unintelligible in response. Someone else was taking more of an interest however. Neither brother noticed a figure lurking in the shadows, watching them suspiciously as they passed.


	5. Chapter 5

_Once again I have to start by saying how incredibly grateful I am for all the reviews. Whirlgirl - I can't reply to you but I love reading your comments and I'm glad you like the story. Bee_

Chapter Five

Penny barely registered the scenery as Parker drove her into town. Instead she considered her forthcoming interview with Vince Ferdinand. Sitting in the back of the hired car, wishing she was in the Rolls, she looked down at herself with a shudder and reminded herself that her current outfit was necessary if not at all flattering. She'd used this disguise before, though it wasn't one of her favourites. Today she was Dr Ward, fully-fledged member of the hospital staff thanks to John who'd hacked into the personnel records and inserted her name and qualifications.

Stepping out of the car as Parker drew to a halt outside the hospital, she asked him to wait outside for half an hour. Then, adjusting her stethoscope around her neck and patting her white coat down, she walked into the hospital.

Wandering down the corridors, her flat shoes irritating her as she walked, Penny finally reached Vince's room. If John had done his job right – and she had no reason to think he wouldn't have – she'd be in the database as one of his doctors and access should be easy. Sure enough the policeman had waved her through without a second glance and she'd finally got her first look at the man she was convinced was one of the blackmailers.

He was asleep when she first entered the room so she took the opportunity to look him over. She guessed he would have been an attractive man if he hadn't been so badly beaten. Right now he looked terrible - his face swollen and bruised. Whoever had attacked him had done a good job. She picked up the chart at the foot of his bed and began to read, wincing at the description of his injuries.

Finally, aware of time ticking by, she shook his shoulder. It took a few moments but finally he opened his eyes and registered her presence.

"Hello," she said, for want of a better greeting.

"Hey, Doc," he whispered. The hoarseness of his voice was enough for her to reach for the glass of water and give him a drink.

He seemed a little more alert then and Penny decided it was time to get down to business.

"Hello, Mr Ferdinand," she said gently. "How are you feeling?"

He looked at her dazedly. "Not so good."

"I'm not surprised. You took quite a beating. Do you remember what happened?"

"Not much. I've already told the police," he said quietly.

"Yes," Penny said, "But have you told them everything?"

He looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, have you told them all about the blackmail plot?""

"Huh?" he stared at her, obviously trying to process this information.

"Mr Ferdinand, let me be honest with you. I'm not a doctor. A friend of mine stayed at Bailey's a few weeks ago. She received quite an interesting email recently." She'd agreed with Jeff that they should go out of their way to keep Bill out of things by claiming to be working on behalf of a female friend. Vince just looked at her, wide-eyed and swallowing nervously.

Penny carried on as she sat down beside him.

"Your _performance_ was interesting to say the least. But it looks as if someone else took offence at your extracurricular activities. Is there anything you want to tell me?"

She almost felt sorry for him as he paled and the monitors indicated his rapidly increasing pulse.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he whispered.

"Oh, please, Mr Ferdinand. My friend is being blackmailed. You're the star of the show. Surely you can remember? I assume whoever did this to you was able to jog your memory?"

"Blackmail?"

"Oh yes, you must have been aware you were being filmed."

He swallowed again and tried to look her in the eye.

"I really don't know what you're talking about." His voice lacked conviction and Penny knew it wouldn't take much to break him.

"Well that's a pity," she said, rising from her chair. "I suppose I'll have to share my information with the police. I'm sure they'll be glad of a lead. They've had no idea why you've been attacked. But if you're not willing to deal with me..."

She headed towards the door only to have Vince call out to her.

"Wait!"

Turning back to him she waited as requested. It didn't take long for Vince to crack.

"Who are you?"

"Well, I can assure you of one thing – I'm nothing to do with the people who attacked you. I am a friend of Connie Hyatt's however, and I'm keen to ensure that whatever is going on at Bailey's comes to an end right now."

"I can't tell you anything." His voice was shaking now.

"Well, that's a shame, Mr Ferdinand. I suppose I'll just have to talk to the police about my suspicions. I take it they have no idea that there's a blackmail ring running at Bailey's?"

Vince looked at her for a moment before his gaze dropped.

"Alright. I knew what was going on."

"I thought as much," Penny said with a satisfied smile, sitting back down again. "What can you tell me, Mr Ferdinand?"

Vince was hesitant but he explained his involvement which, to Penny's disappointment, had been fairly limited. He told her how he'd always taken an interest in the lone women who stayed at the hotel, gaining himself quite a reputation amongst the staff, though he was sure Connie Hyatt had had no idea. He explained how he'd been recruited into the blackmail ring for a small cut in the profits.

"There's not much money to be made as a lifeguard." He tried to justify himself. "I was hoping to make a bit of money, get on in life. I guess I didn't really think it through."

Penny remained silent.

"That night... They came out of nowhere. There was no one around to help me. I had to give Rob up. They would have killed me otherwise."

"Rob Hall?" Penny asked.

"Yes. He got me into it. It was easy money. I never really thought about what it would mean to the women. I'm sorry..."

Penny didn't believe him for a moment.

"So you're saying Rob Hall is the one who's masterminding all this?"

"I don't know. I got the impression there was someone else involved as well. But Rob wasn't giving anyone away. I really don't know anything about how it all worked. I just did my thing and took the money."

"And you don't know which of your victims sent these men to hurt you?"

"No idea. There could only be a few though. I haven't been doing this for all that long."

"Could you give me the names?" Penny asked.

Five minutes later she left the room reeling slightly at the information Vince had given her. Finding an empty room she passed the news onto John, relieved to have something to tell him, yet somewhat apologetic at adding to the long list of tasks he'd already taken on board.

* * *

John did indeed baulk at the sheer volume of research he had to do. In addition to looking into the names provided by Vince, he'd also been asked to investigate all the staff and trace all those guests who had stayed at the resort over the past six months, looking for any hint of scandal or monetary difficulties. This was in addition to all his International Rescue duties. It was going to take a long time – too long to help Penny and his brothers. A call to Tracy Island was made and his father agreed that some tasks should be taken over by Gordon, Alan and Tin-Tin. The bad weather in Europe seemed to have abated – they'd only had one easy call-out since Scott and Virgil had left - and all was quiet on the International Rescue front, for now at least. The two younger boys weren't exactly thrilled by the boring jobs they were given, but they recognised the necessity. Alan got down to work with little fuss, but Gordon kept switching back to Bailey's website, glaring at the pictures of the pool and muttering to himself that life was unfair.

* * *

At Bailey's Scott was on duty at the pool. Everything was fairly quiet – once again he'd been called upon to apply suntan lotion to various women. One in particular seemed to have taken a fancy to him, an elderly lady who introduced herself as the Duchess of Derwent as she held out a wrinkled hand.

Scott was slightly taken aback as she whispered her room number.

"Such a shame about young Vincent, but I'm sure you're a more than adequate replacement. In _every_ way."

Scott didn't quite know what to say to that so he stayed quiet, keeping a smile fixed on his face whilst trying not to let the panic show in his eyes as he rubbed lotion on her back. He was glad Virgil wasn't there to witness it. In fact, at that moment he'd gladly have handed over his undercover duties to Gordon. He wondered what Penny would say when he told her – she'd laughed when she'd seen the Duchess's name on the guest list and he'd wondered why at the time. Returning thankfully to his lifeguard's chair he kept an eye on the pool, aware all the time of the Duchess's eyes on him. All was quiet. A young girl dived in and he watched idly waiting for her to reappear. When she didn't and he could see her at the bottom of the pool, apparently struggling to surface, he leapt into action.

He used his radio to contact Dave as he jumped down from his chair, then he dived into the pool, reaching the girl with just a few strokes. He saw that she'd become trapped by her long hair in the filter at the bottom of the pool. _Surely that thing should have been covered,_ he thought, realising that there was no way of freeing her. She'd be dead by the time he could get someone to turn the filter off. There was only one thing for it. Memories of his recent rescue by Virgil came back to him as he reached into his pocket for his penknife and sliced through her hair. As soon as she was free he grabbed her and pulled her to the surface. Coughing and spluttering she let him drag her to the side where Dave was waiting to pull her out. Jumping up to the poolside himself Scott waited for her to recover, relieved when she struggled to her feet, only to be surprised when she turned to him and slapped his face as hard as she could. She might have been small, but she packed a hard punch and he staggered backwards, feeling a scratch on his cheek and the warmth of blood trickling from his nose.

"_My hair! You cut off my hair!"_

Scott tried to protest that it had been the only way but she wasn't in the mood to listen. He'd taken another hit before Dave could get hold of her. By then her parents had reached them, luckily so relieved to see their daughter alive that they didn't care what methods he'd used to do it. The father thanked Scott profusely whilst the mother tried to calm her daughter who now seemed to be going into shock, fury replaced by sobs.

"Sorry about the hair," Scott said, risking approaching her once more. "It was that or leave you to die."

She sobbed louder at this but managed a smile.

"Sorry I hit you," she gasped, staring guiltily at his bloody nose.

"That's okay, I understand. Are you alright?"

"She's fine," her mother said. "But how did it happen? Surely there should have been a cover on that thing?"

"You'd have thought so," Scott said thoughtfully, glancing over at Dave who looked equally puzzled. He wondered if this was yet another of those little incidents which were combining to ruin the reputation of Bailey's. Grabbing a towel, he left Dave to pacify the parents and went to get changed before heading off to report to Connie.

* * *

Virgil had spent most of the morning practising with the band. This was what he had been dreading. Playing the piano was one thing, but keyboards were far more complicated. The practice had gone reasonably well and the band was supportive but Virgil worried that there were far too many things which needed work. He was glad when lunchtime came and he had the chance to take a break and talk to Scott. They'd arranged to meet to grab a sandwich in the staff canteen before heading off to Bridges' office which they'd been assured would be deserted. Connie had promised to call him in for a meeting and to keep him for at least half an hour and his secretary would be at lunch.

"What happened to you?" Virgil asked in surprise as he caught sight of Scott's scratched cheek. Scott explained as they grabbed their lunch and settled themselves down at a corner table.

"So another 'accident'," Virgil mused. "Looks like Bill was wrong. This isn't over yet."

"No. But have you noticed how these things are getting more serious? To start with it was minor things, but now... a guest broke her arm, that cleaner was lucky there was a doctor staying in the hotel and the girl today would have drowned if I hadn't had my pocketknife on me. Dave didn't have one; he wouldn't have been able to save her." Scott looked troubled.

"There was another theft last night," Virgil told him. "One of the guests lost some jewellery. I heard Connie having a real go at Bridges – apparently the security cameras cut out just before the alarms sounded."

"Convenient. We need to look into the security guards too by the look of it, though I guess Bridges would have had access to the camera controls. I hope we get something from these bugs."

"We'd better get going," Virgil said with a glance at his watch. "He should be in with Connie by now."

"Got the kit?" Scott asked.

"All in here," Virgil indicated his music case.

Planting the listening devices in Bridges office didn't take long and the brothers took the time to search the room for anything which might prove the involvement of the hotel manager. There was nothing obvious though and all they could do was wait and hope that Bridges would give himself away. Checking with John to ensure that the bugs were working, they left the room, confident that between John and the rest of the family on the Island, Bridges' conversations would be closely monitored.

Scott returned to the pool whilst Virgil made his way back to the rehearsal room. He was a little early and only Miguel Sanchez was there, idly picking out a guitar riff. He stopped when Virgil came in.

"Hey, Virgil. Ready for another session?"

Virgil sat down at the piano and stretched out his arms. "I wish we had longer. There's a lot still to do."

"You'll do okay. We've made more progress than I expected to be honest. Amy said you wouldn't have too much trouble picking everything up."

"She's been a lot of help," Virgil said. "She told me about the guy I'm replacing. Said he disappeared."

"Tuesday night," Miguel said. "His room caught fire too, you know. The police have no idea what's going on."

"It's a bit odd," Virgil said. "I just hope there's no one out there with a grudge against pianists."

"Well if there is he's not too keen on lifeguards either," Miguel informed him. "I wouldn't worry Virgil, Rob had a few enemies round here. The police even interviewed me – Bridges told them he heard us arguing."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Rob put the band together but he didn't have a lot of ambition. I had a few ideas but he refused to listen. He's the most stubborn man I've ever met. Not a nice guy. But I'm not going to make someone disappear over a couple of song choices. I'm out of here at the end of the summer anyway. This season will let me get enough money together to record some of my own songs."

Virgil considered the guitarist as he listened. Miguel seemed genuine, though his admission that he needed money left him wondering. Still, he reminded himself, most people weren't the sons of billionaires, never needing to worry about whether or not they could afford something. Probably every member of staff at Bailey's had a dream of doing something different with their lives if they only had the money. Virgil felt he couldn't rule him out, though he hoped he was innocent – he liked Miguel and he'd been patient and supportive in the morning session. He just hoped the guitarist was in the same frame of mind this afternoon – the songs they were due to rehearse were the most complex in the set list.

In fairness, the entire band had been welcoming. He could understand their apprehension at being landed with a new member the day before a show, but Connie had praised his performance in the bar the night before and the fact that Richard Bridges had also apparently made a positive comment had gone a long way to alleviating any concerns the others might have. Virgil liked them a lot. If he wasn't so terrified about the following night's performance he'd have enjoyed the day. But the knowledge that in just over twenty four hours he'd be doing this for real with no second chances was beginning to make him feel slightly sick.

The band practice finally at an end, Virgil made his way down to the pool to meet up with Scott. His brother was just finishing his shift and the two of them walked back to their room together. Virgil was a little distracted and Scott cast around for something to take his mind off the impending performance with Amy.

"Hey, Virg. You know the plan Penny and I have?"

"Scared?" Virgil asked. He found the whole thing very entertaining and was enjoying Scott's discomfiture.

"Yes," Scott laughed. "But it looks as if I didn't need to set anything up with Penny. I've had another offer."

"Yeah, who?"

"One of Penny's friends, actually. The Duchess of Derwent."

"What? That old woman who looks about a hundred?"

"Hey, she's rich. "

"And apparently desperate," Virgil laughed. "Still, if you'd prefer her to Penny..."

Scott cuffed him on the back of the head. "She was very fond of Vince apparently."

"Her name wasn't on the list Penny gave us," Virgil pointed out.

"That's true. Actually I get the feeling she'd be thrilled to have the world know she could get a young, attractive man. She terrifies me though – maybe I should get Penny to warn her off."

Virgil stared at him, his mind well and truly off his music for the first time since arriving at the hotel. Scott Tracy admitting to being scared? Running away from a woman older than Grandma? This promised to be even more amusing than Scott's forthcoming charade with Penny!

Despite his amusement over Scott's predicament, it didn't take long for Virgil to start brooding over the following day's performance again and he was still fretting over the keyboard parts later that evening – so much so that he'd barely given a thought to his upcoming accompaniment for Amy. Scott tried to reassure him that everything would be fine but to no avail.

A knock at the door came as a welcome relief. He opened it to find Amy standing there, a leather case in her hand.

"Hi, Scott, I was looking for Virgil."

"Come on in," Scott said, glancing back to where Virgil still sat on the bed staring gloomily into space, fingers moving in time to the music only he could hear. "He's having his usual panic attack before he performs. You might be able to convince him that he's going to be okay."

"Of course he will. I'm looking forward to tonight."

"Actually, I think it's tomorrow that's bothering him more. He's stressed out over a couple of those keyboard parts."

"Well, I might be able to help him there," Amy said, walking over to Virgil.

"Hey, Virgil. " She was standing right in front of him before he noticed her. "I thought you might find this useful. I found Rob's music – he was always scribbling notes to himself. I haven't looked through it, but he's bound to have something here which will help."

Virgil grabbed the case like a drowning man reaching for a lifebelt. Flicking through the paper inside he let out a happy cry as he found what he was looking for.

"Amy, thanks. You're a lifesaver!"

"No problem. Do you want to run through those songs again? We've got an hour or so before we go on."

"Would you mind?" Virgil was looking happier already.

"Of course not."

"Come on then, let's get down to the studio."

Scott smiled in amusement as Virgil practically dragged her away.

An hour later, with no sign of Virgil, Scott decided to head up to the hotel with a change of clothes for his brother. Sure enough he was still in the rehearsal studio, though Amy had disappeared to get herself ready. Horrified when he realised the time, Virgil quickly got himself changed and the two brothers headed off to the bar.

"Come on, let's have a look at you," Scott smiled, tweaking Virgil's collar as his brother squirmed away.

"Looking good, Virg. I'm sure Amy will appreciate it."

"Stop going on about Amy."

"Oh come on, she obviously likes you. Dave says she has a thing for pianists – must like a man who's good with his hands. Enjoy it, Virg - remember what Dad said about having some fun."

"Fun?" Virgil said eyeing the piano suspiciously. "How is this fun?"

Scott couldn't help laughing. "Well it's fun for me to see you worked up like this. It's the only time you ever get stressed."

"Oh thanks," Virgil said bitterly. "Well you'll really enjoy yourself tomorrow. Here, take this for me." He handed Scott Rob's music case, then made his way over to the piano.

Wandering back out outside, intending to take the music case back to his room, Scott bumped into Parker who told him that Penny was already on her way to the bar. Passing the case over to him he asked him to look after it. Then he made his way back inside, arriving just as the show started.

Penny and Scott repeated their act of the previous evening. Tomorrow night, they had decided, would be the night to try to get the blackmailers' interest. Scott was a little nervous and more than a little embarrassed at the prospect of doing enough to warrant blackmail whilst keeping their relationship professional. As a result there was little conversation between them.

Scott listened with pride to his brother's playing. The whole performance was magnificent. It was the first time he'd heard Amy sing and he was a little surprised by the power and beauty of her voice. She was certainly inspiring Virgil - Scott had never heard him sound better. She wore a gold silk dress which clung to her body in a manner which got the full attention of every man in the room. Scott envied his brother his clear view, though when Amy lay across the piano for a particularly slow, sultry number, it was clear that the pianist was getting a little flustered. Scott smiled as he saw Virgil concentrating fiercely on his hands, unable to look at the singer. He guessed Amy was deliberately teasing him, especially when she leaned across him at the end of the song, running a hand down his cheek. He turned to Penny, about to make a joke about his brother's discomfiture, when he became aware of a large man in a suit and a 'Bailey's' tie standing across the room. The man stared at Virgil and Amy for a minute, a grim expression on his face, before turning and stalking out of the room.

Penny had seen him looking and had followed his gaze.

"Who was that?" Scott asked.

"I believe that is Mr Kerr, the head of security. He's been helping the police look into Vince Ferdinand's attack for the past couple of days. Connie said he'd be back tonight."

"He didn't look too friendly," Scott said slowly, still disconcerted by the way the man had looked at his brother and Amy. "We should probably speak to him, but I'm reluctant to risk letting him know what we're really up to."

"You may be right, Scott. I wonder if Virgil's friend can tell us why he was looking so unhappy."

Scott turned to look back at his brother. Pausing for a moment to join in the applause for Amy's final song, he considered the situation.

"Well, Amy's an attractive girl. Maybe he's just jealous."

"Perhaps. But it might be as well to warn them."

"Guess so," Scott agreed, rising from his seat. "I'll have a word with Virg."

He was reluctant to disturb his brother who was once more deep in conversation with Amy, but Virgil looked up at his approach and smiled.

"Hey, Scott. What did you think?"

"Awesome – both of you."

"Thank you," Amy smiled.

"Say, did you see that guy by the door just now?"

"What guy?" Neither Virgil nor Amy had seen him, but when Scott described him Amy recognised him at once.

"Sounds like Jason Kerr, the head of security."

Scott and Virgil exchanged looks, remembering how the security cameras had cut out the night before. The head of security would be a useful job for someone embarking on a blackmail plot – access to all the rooms, CCTV footage, an eye on every part of the hotel. John had already checked Jason Kerr out but had found nothing suspicious. Not that that really meant anything – perhaps he simply hadn't been caught out before.

Amy continued,

"So he didn't like me playing up to Virgil then? Doesn't surprise me. He's one of Rob's best friends."

"So he wouldn't be too happy if you started seeing someone else?" Scott asked with a concerned look at his brother.

"Nothing to do with him." Amy stood up. "I broke up with Rob days before he left. Jason knows that."

"Do you think he might be in touch with Rob?" Virgil asked.

"Maybe. They were pretty close. I haven't asked him though. I don't want him to think I've got any interest in Rob. I hope nothing bad has happened to him. But it's nice to be free of him watching my every move."

Scott frowned. Rob Hall was apparently the possessive type. Despite all their efforts they'd found no clue as to his whereabouts. But if he'd deliberately gone into hiding to escape the same fate as Vince Ferdinand then he was probably being kept informed of events at the hotel by his accomplice – and Jason Kerr might well be that man. Certainly if the man was in touch with Hall he'd be reporting back on the fact that his girlfriend – and apparently Hall hadn't accepted that she was his _ex-_girlfriend – was making her move on another man, Hall's replacement in the band no less. He felt a stab of worry for his brother. Wishing he hadn't encouraged him to have some fun with Amy he walked back to Penny.

"Is everything alright, Scott?" she asked, noticing his pensive expression.

"I'm not sure Penny. We may have a line on another of our blackmailers though. Come on, let's walk back to your room and I'll fill you in."

* * *

Amy and Virgil sat in the rehearsal room, an empty wine bottle and glasses in front of them. They'd discussed their performance then chatted idly as they unwound. It was late, but neither of them seemed ready to leave.

"So..." Amy looked across at Virgil, wishing that he was going to stay longer than just two weeks. So far he'd been a perfect gentleman but she wasn't above making the first move. She stood up and moved across to the piano.

"Virgil."

"Yes?"

"Come here. I want to practise that last number again."

"Again?"

"Yes, there's something I want to try out."

"What?" Virgil asked, moving towards the piano.

"You..."

* * *

"Hey, Virg." Scott pulled the covers off his brother. "It's one thirty. Beach volleyball in half an hour."

"Go 'way," his brother groaned, pulling the pillow over his head.

"Virg? It's girls... in bikinis... jumping around in the sand... Not interested? We're supposed to be enjoying ourselves, you know."

"Mm," his brother mumbled something incoherent.

"What's that?" Scott teased. "Had enough of that sort of thing watching Amy last night, did you? You were the envy of every man in that room, you know. Most of us would have killed to be that close to her. "

He pulled the pillow away from the other man's head.

"What time did you get in, anyway?" Scott asked. "I fell asleep around two. Don't tell me you and Amy were just talking all that time?" He smiled as he watched Virgil turn red.

"Come on, then, Virg. Tell me all about it."

"Nothing to tell."

"Don't believe you."

Virgil sat up with a groan, realising his brother wasn't going to go away.

" We were ... trying something out on the piano."

"On the piano? Really?" Scott was impressed. "Wow, Virg... no wonder volleyball seems a bit tame."


	6. Chapter 6

_Thanks so much for the reviews of the last chapter - I was a bit nervous about that one. But you know when you're writing and sometimes the characters 'speak' to you? Well Virgil was very insistent that I included the last bit of chapter 5 as payback for all I've done to him – and what I'm going to do in the next story I'm writing... Seemed fair! _

Chapter Six

John had been busy. In addition to his usual International Rescue duties, he'd been doing some research into the staff at Bailey's, Penny having provided him with a list. For the most part they were an uninteresting bunch, squeaky clean as far as any criminal involvement went. There was certainly nothing to indicate any participation in a blackmail plot. One thing he did discover however – or rather fail to discover – was the history of Rob Hall. The man seemed to have no past whatsoever, leading John to suspect that whoever he really was, he was using an assumed name. He'd followed the lead Virgil had given him and hacked into the staff records of the hotel in Las Vegas where Amy said he'd worked. He'd drawn a blank – no Rob Hall had ever worked there. However, trawling through their records a second time, just in case he'd missed something, he discovered that a Robin Halliday had worked there as a pianist until he was fired for what was vaguely listed as 'inappropriate behaviour with a guest'. Comparing the photograph with the one from Connie's records, he knew that despite the different hair and eye colour - things which were fairly easily changed - he'd found his man. He began yet another search, this time with the new name.

He had delegated Gordon and Tin-Tin the task of looking into recent scandals to find any connection with Bailey's. Tin-Tin was in her element, pulling out numerous back copies of her favourite magazines whilst Gordon trawled through the more salacious gossip websites in the hope of establishing a link. It had been an entertaining couple of days and they'd come up with a couple of names, an actor and a rock star. Both men had fairly sleazy reputations and were unlikely to worry about their affairs being publicised, having no ties and nothing to lose. They certainly wouldn't have been worth blackmailing. Still, there was always money to be made from this kind of picture – maybe the blackmailers had a sideline selling photos in cases where the subject wasn't a potential blackmail victim. It would certainly cover all the bases. The same magazine had published pictures of the two men in fairly compromising positions and Gordon wondered if it would be worth finding out who had sold them the pictures. He was just about to make a start when Tin-Tin discovered yet another apparent victim, one who had lost more than his dignity when the pictures were published. And this one might just be persuaded to talk...

Alan had been monitoring the information from the bugs in Bridges' office as well as helping John with his research. He was a little resentful that he hadn't been paired with Tin-Tin, but when he'd suggested it to John his brother had laughed and commented that both tasks needed full concentration. An indignant Alan had insisted that the pair of them would be purely professional, but John was having none of it. Alan had sulked for a while, but when Gordon came to tell him of his findings he perked up again. A few months ago one of his biggest racing rivals had been caught cheating on his wife with a model - at Bailey's. Following the publication of some fairly intimate pictures, divorce proceedings were now underway and Dion Lombardi was looking at the loss of a substantial part of his fortune in settlement.

"Why didn't you know about this?" Gordon asked.

"I knew what had happened. I didn't know it was at Bailey's though. Tell you what, Dion's not the type to be blackmailed. He's the 'publish and be damned' type."

"Well they certainly published..." Gordon said, gazing at the pictures once again. "And it's the same magazine as before. Maybe they've got a contact at the hotel."

"I can't believe anyone would try to blackmail Dion," Alan murmured. "He'd never pay up. He'd do anything he could to find the blackmailer and make sure he never tried it again."

"Like beating up a lifeguard? Why don't you give him a call?" Gordon suggested. "See if he can help us."

Alan shook his head. "Wouldn't work, Gords. The man wouldn't give me the time of day when we were racing, he's hardly likely to be up for a friendly chat about his affairs now. No, this needs a bit more subtlety. Where's Dad?"

"In the lounge," Gordon told him. "Why? What did you have in mind?"

"It's pre-season testing in Spain," Alan informed him. "Maybe I should drop by and catch up with a few old friends. If I happen to bump into Dion..."

Gordon watched him leave with some frustration. He knew his father would allow Alan to make the trip. It wasn't fair. Alan in Spain, Scott and Virgil in the Seychelles, whilst he was stuck on Tracy Island. There wasn't even the prospect of a rescue to liven things up.

Sure enough, Jeff agreed that Dion Lombardi was worth talking to and Alan left a couple of hours later, taking Thunderbird One for the sake of speed. He'd have to leave her at Foxley-Heath and take a more traditional mode of transport to Spain. Even so, he could be back in One and ready to get to a rescue in a couple of hours. He enjoyed the flight, though he wished he could have persuaded his father to let him take Tin-Tin along. He'd have enjoyed showing her off to his old racing friends. But even so he had the thrill of a flight in One where speed was of the essence. About time too, he thought. Despite the frenetic activity of the previous week, International Rescue had only had one simple callout since Scott and Virgil had left. He was beginning to think he'd lose his chance to fly One and man Mobile Control in a really serious emergency. He was sick of simulations, he just wanted some real excitement and responsibility.

The track at Jerez was home to several of the Formula One teams for a couple of weeks whilst they put their new cars through their paces. Alan had forgotten how much he missed his racing days, but as he wandered down the pit lane towards his old team's garage, it all came flooding back. The scent of oil and fuel and the deafening roar of the engines brought a rush of nostalgia.

Deliberately walking straight past Dion Lombardi who stood at the mouth of his garage deep in discussion with his mechanic, Alan headed for his old team's garage. It was a joyful reunion and an hour had passed before he remembered why he was really there. Reluctantly rejecting the offer of a spin round the track in one of the new cars, he set out in search of Lombardi. He knew his old rival's habits well. At twelve o'clock he'd be found round the back of the garages enjoying a swift cigarette before lunch.

Sure enough, he was alone, sitting on a wall, deep in thought. Alan approached him with a nervous smile. They'd been rivals, not friends and Dion had forced him into the wall on more than one occasion. He wasn't the cleanest of drivers and he had quite a reputation due to his fiery temper. More than one mechanic had found himself on the receiving end of a fist and Alan resolved to keep a strategic distance between them.

"Hey, Dion. Good to see you," he smiled.

"Tracy." It wasn't the most enthusiastic of greetings, but for Dion it was almost effusive. "Come to see what you're missing?"

Alan sat down. "Actually, I came to see you."

That got Dion's interest.

"Me? You surprise me."

"Actually I surprise myself. Listen, I heard about you and Olivia – sorry about that by the way. But you see, a friend of mine was staying at Bailey's recently-"

He couldn't fail to notice the way Dion tensed up at the mention of the resort.

"- and the thing is, well, he was in the same position as you. Staying at Bailey's, wife was back home, he was lonely, he met a girl... You know how it is..."

Dion was looking at him with cautious interest. "Go on."

"Well, a few days ago he got this email. With pictures of him and the girl and a demand for money. He asked me for some advice and I remembered what happened to you. And you were at Bailey's at the time too, weren't you?"

Dion turned to stare at him, cursing as his cigarette burned down to his fingers. Throwing it onto the ground he seemed to consider for a moment then nodded.

"Looks like your friend is in the same position I was. Let me guess. Seventy-five thousand as a down-payment or the tape goes to the wife and the press?"

"You got it." Considerably more than they'd demanded from Bill Brand, but then he wasn't in the same league as far as money was concerned. "He doesn't know what to do. It will ruin him if it gets out, but if he pays up they'll bleed him dry. You say they blackmailed you too?"

Lombardi laughed bitterly. "I don't give in to blackmail, Tracy. You should know me better than that."

"Well, given the pictures ended up in the papers I didn't think you'd paid up. What happened?"

"I told them to go to hell then I confessed to Olivia. We fought, she agreed to forgive me. Then this journalist approached me. I told him to print what he liked. So he did. Trouble was, the girl I was with in the pictures he printed wasn't the one in the tape they sent Olivia. I should have known they'd recorded me the whole time I was there, I just hoped I'd get away with it. They got me good, Tracy. Olivia left me. Maybe I should have paid up."

He thought for a moment. "What is your friend going to do?"

"He's got until tomorrow to pay up. He's got too much to lose to let the pictures be published."

"Well he has my sympathy." Dion got up.

"Do you have any idea who was responsible?" Alan asked, rising to his own feet.

"Someone at Bailey's, for sure," Dion said.

"Looks that way. Did you go to the police?"

"Of course I did. I didn't stay at Bailey's when I went back though. But the police did nothing. I wonder if someone there is getting a cut of the blackmail money. There had to be something to find out."

"Who did you speak to?" Alan was excited at the prospect of a new lead.

"The guy in charge, of course. Captain someone... I'm not going to share my private details with anyone. But I swear the guy wasn't surprised. He knew exactly what was going on. I tell you, Tracy, when testing's through and this divorce is over, I'm going to find out who's responsible for this and they'll be sorry. You tell your friend to get in touch with me if he wants a piece of them."

_Something tells me you're not the first to think that way,_ Alan thought, remembering Vince Ferdinand's fate as he shook Dion's hand and headed back to his old friends. Still, at least he had a new lead – the local police in on the plot? That would give Penny another angle to work on. And it was logical really. After all, surely not all of the blackmail victims would have played along. Some must have gone to the police.

Happy that his trip had elicited a new piece of information, Alan thought about heading straight back home before deciding that a few more hours away wouldn't hurt anyone. He enjoyed several more hours at the track, finally getting to put the new car through its paces, before reluctantly heading back to Penny's mansion. He was tired and decided not to risk flying One until he'd had a good night's sleep. Passing on his information to his father, he turned his thoughts back to Tin-Tin, wondering if she'd missed him and hoping for an enthusiastic welcome when he returned home the next day.

* * *

On Tracy Island Gordon was still unhappy. Brains had needed Tin-Tin's help with a project so he took the opportunity to take a break from his research for a couple of hours, turning his attention to Thunderbird Four, giving her a good clean and running an unnecessary systems check just for something to do. It felt strange to be the only brother on the island. He'd been pleased when Scott called him for a progress report, glad to have some news for his brother.

"So they could be running this from two angles," Scott said slowly. "Blackmailing people with something to lose and selling pictures of anyone who isn't going to care who knows what they've been up to."

"Looks that way," Gordon said. "I'm going to look into the magazine – see if I can find out who the contact at Bailey's is. With a bit of luck it won't be Rob Hall and you can get a lead on the other guy."

"That would be useful," Scott agreed. "We might be home early. All this sitting around in the sun looking at girls gets a bit boring after a while."

"Yeah, right," Gordon said wearily. "I'm not rising to it, Scott. You have your fun while you can. Dad's already agreed I can take some leave when you and Virg get back. I might head off to Bailey's myself if the place is still going by the time you two have finished there. How's Virg getting on anyway?"

"Fine. In a real state about tonight of course, but I think he's enjoying himself. He seems quite taken with Amy."

Gordon thought back to the previous evening. Scott had transmitted Virgil and Amy's performance, switching to visual for the last couple of songs. He'd been envious enough of his brother just being near the girl – and now it seemed he'd got even closer... Now he was really fed-up. Like Scott, Virgil and John he didn't find it easy being isolated on the island and watching Alan with Tin-Tin really didn't help.

"Lucky Virg," he said. "Maybe he'll want to stay on."

Scott laughed. "Maybe I will too. This is quite a place, Gords. You'd enjoy yourself here. It's just a shame there's all this nastiness around."

"Talking of enjoying yourself..." Gordon smiled wickedly, "Isn't tonight the night with Penny?" He had to laugh at the way Scott's face instantly drained of all colour.

"I'm trying not to think about it," he admitted. "It feels all wrong. Still, if it draws our blackmailers out..."

"Cheer up, Scott," Gordon said. "At least it'll soon be over and you can have some real fun yourself." The thought made him even more depressed.

"True," Scott admitted. "There are plenty of women at the pool who seem to like me. One in particular. I just can't get her out of my head..."

Laughing at his brother's expression he ended the call. He wasn't going to admit to Gordon that the woman he had in mind was past eighty and the reason he couldn't stop thinking of her was because of the terror she inspired in him. She'd been at the pool again that morning, calling him over and winking at him suggestively as she demanded he help her apply her suntan lotion. He wished he'd studied harder at his piano lessons, then he'd be the one with Amy and Virgil could have been fending off rampant pensioners. At least Penny was offering him some protection from the Duchess's advances – he'd seen his admirer looking disappointed when she'd spotted the two of them in the bar the night before. He began to appreciate just how desperate for money Vince Ferdinand must have been in order to take part in the blackmail plot and hire himself out to any available woman. The need for money wasn't something he was familiar with and it never ceased to amaze him the lengths some people would go to. What he had planned with Penny later was bad enough...


	7. Chapter 7

_Thank you so much for the reviews - some of the comments have really made me laugh. Over to Scott and Penny now... Hope you enjoy it. Bee_

Chapter Seven

Scott returned from the staff canteen just in time to meet Penny at the room he and Virgil shared. He'd eaten alone since his brother hadn't been able to face food, still worrying about that night's performance. In some ways Scott was relieved that Virgil wasn't capable of focusing on anything other than his music, otherwise he'd have been in for some serious ribbing about his own 'performance' later that night. In fact, for the first time in his life, he knew how his brother felt. When, earlier that morning, Parker had appeared at the pool and silently handed him an envelope, he'd found himself hoping that Penny had decided to back out. Instead he'd been presented with a tightly choreographed routine to follow, along with a long list of do's and don't's. It just made him even more nervous. On the one hand it was nice to know just what he was expected to do, on the other... Penny certainly seemed intent on making their charade convincing. He found himself blushing as he greeted her. Penny herself of course was maddeningly calm.

"Scott, darling," she enthused loudly. "I thought I'd pay you a visit, I've missed you today."

"Always a pleasure to see you," he replied before whispering, "Anything to report?"

"Nothing further. I take it you've spoken to Alan?"

"Gordon, actually. This situation is more complicated than I thought."

"I thought the three of us could work out our next move." She was surprised when Scott smiled and shook his head.

"Just to warn you," he said as he opened the door. "Virgil's not exactly himself right now. I don't think he'll come up with any ideas tonight."

"Whatever do you mean, Scott?" Penny asked.

"You'll see," Scott grinned, following her into the room.

Virgil sat staring into space. He'd put on the black shirt Connie had provided for him, which was something of a relief to Scott given his nerves and the absolute horror he'd expressed on seeing what the men in the band were expected to wear. Scott had a certain sympathy - he shared his brother's distaste for sequins, however subtle - but he certainly hadn't relished the prospect of a return to their younger days. He'd had a flashback to the time not so long after their mother died when seven year old Virgil had decided he didn't want to go to school anymore. Scott had spent far too many mornings having to chase, pin down and forcibly dress his brother. In those days it had been easy, but now he'd have had a much harder job.

Penny cast Scott a curious glance as Virgil totally failed to notice their presence. She knew he got nervous before a performance, but she'd never seen him like this before.

"Hey, Virg," Scott called, poking his brother in the ribs and making him jump.

"Don't do that!" Virgil snapped. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

Scott just laughed. "Penny's here. She's looking forward to tonight's show. All set?"

Virgil laughed bitterly. "You know perfectly well I'm nowhere near ready. We've only gone through some of the songs a couple of times at half-speed and I couldn't get them right then. Why did I let you talk me into this?"

Penny was about to speak, intending to try to take his mind off things by discussing Alan's news, but instead she found herself watching Virgil anxiously as he suddenly jumped up from his chair, an expression of panic on his face.

"What's wrong, Virgil?" she asked.

"I just need to check something," he muttered, grabbing his music and scanning it anxiously.

Scott cast Penny an amused glance.

"Don't worry, Penny, he's always like this before a performance. I don't know why, he's always great once he gets started."

"There's always a first time," Virgil said bleakly, staring down at his hands as if he didn't trust them anymore.

"Virg, you know you'll be fine. Relax." Scott pushed his brother back down onto his seat.

"Yes, Virgil, I have every faith in you. You've always played wonderfully for me."

"There's a difference between playing in the lounge on Tracy Island and performing in front of a couple of hundred people."

"Well," Scott mused, "At least if it all goes horribly wrong you won't ever have to see any of them again. If it went wrong at home you'd never hear the end of it from Gordon and Alan."

Virgil stared at him in horror.

"You think it'll be a disaster, don't you? I knew I should have got in some more practice. I'm going to ruin it for the rest of the band. It's alright for me, I'll be gone in a week and they're going to have to pick up the pieces." He jumped up again and began to pace around the room.

"Virgil! Sit down!" Scott shook his head in amusement. He knew what was coming next. Sure enough, Virgil suddenly bolted for the door.

"I can't do this," he moaned as Scott caught him by the collar before he could make a run for it.

"Yes you can," Scott told him, sitting him down and putting himself between his brother and the door in case he tried to escape again.

"Virgil," Lady Penelope took his hand. "Are you really telling me that the man who would calmly walk into the direst peril during a rescue is scared of playing the piano in front of a few people?"

"I'm not scared," Virgil told her mournfully, "I'm terrified."

Scott looked at his watch. "Eight o'clock, Virg. Time to go. I promise, you'll feel better once you start playing."

He had to pull his brother to his feet and drag him through the door.

* * *

Scott was right, of course. Virgil's nerves disappeared as soon as he touched his keyboard. He guessed from his brother's occasional frowns that it wasn't a perfect performance, but he couldn't spot any mistakes and from the guests' enthusiastic response he knew they hadn't noticed anything either. He knew he'd have to listen to a long, self-critical review from Virgil later, but from the band's encouraging smiles he guessed his brother would be reasonably satisfied that at least he hadn't let them down. The song which Virgil had worried about the most had Scott almost holding his breath, but Virgil managed just fine and Scott smiled at his brother's heartfelt sigh of relief at the end. He was tempted to go up to congratulate Virgil but was forestalled by Amy who flung her arms around him enthusiastically. Virgil even managed a smile, though whether it was due to the success of the song or to Amy's reaction, Scott couldn't be sure.

Eventually they reached the slow songs, a couple of piano-led ballads, and Scott saw his brother finally begin to relax just as his own nerves kicked in. He led Penny out onto the dance floor, holding her close, painfully aware of Virgil watching them and knowing he was going to be teased mercilessly about this for the rest of his life.

Once again Scott had transmitted Virgil's performance to Tracy Island. Jeff sat and listened proudly. Gordon was enjoying himself for the first time in days. Some energetic dancing with Tin-Tin and some more restrained moves with a protesting but not entirely unwilling Grandma had put him in a better mood and he returned to his research with a little more enthusiasm, though this time distractions came not from dreaming of the girls at the pool, but from wondering just what Scott was getting up to with Penny.

When the final encore ended, Scott caught his brother's eye and smiled broadly. He was about to go over to congratulate Virgil on his performance when Miguel clapped his brother on the back and said something and his attention was distracted. Then Bridges came over, carrying a tray of beers and actually smiling for once, so Scott left Virgil to it, deciding his brother would probably take the opportunity to finally relax with the band. He turned his attention back to the woman beside him. Now Virgil's performance was over, it was time for Scott and Penny to put on a show of their own. He just hoped the blackmailers took the bait.

Penny looked up at Scott with a smile.

"Well, Scott, perhaps you would be kind enough to escort me to my room."

It was time...

* * *

They walked hand in hand, saying little. When they got into Penny's room they looked at each other nervously for a moment. Desperate to get on with it, deciding that the sooner they got started the sooner it would be over, Scott pulled her into his arms and kissed her, hoping it looked realistic. He'd never expected to be doing this with Penny, though when he'd first met her he - like his brothers - had wondered what it would be like.

Scott desperately tried to remember Penny's instructions, forgetting most of them and having to improvise, hoping he wasn't going too far. He knew that she wasn't going to slap his face if he did – not now anyway - but he dreaded having to face the wrath of Parker in the morning if he got too carried away. He didn't know what Penny was thinking, but he had to bite back a yelp of surprise as her hands wandered across his body – he was sure that move hadn't been in the script and he wondered if she too had become flustered enough to forget the routine.

Suddenly Penny broke away and pulled Scott into the bathroom. She sat down on the edge of the bath whilst Scott leaned against the door. He wasn't sure if he was glad it was over or not.

"That was... interesting..." he said finally, not knowing quite what to say.

"Indeed," Penny replied, not quite meeting his eye. There was an uncomfortable pause for a moment before she got back to business.

"At least we're safe in here," she said, turning on the shower. "Thankfully they have the decency not to bug the bathroom."

"Do you want me to turn that to cold?" Scott asked, as the room began to fill with steam.

"No, Scott," said Penny, shaking out her hair. "I think we need to look a little hot when we go back out, don't you?" He had to admire her attention to detail, though in actual fact he wouldn't have minded a cold shower at that moment.

After a while Penny moved towards the door. "Well, I think my reputation is well and truly ruined."

Mindful of his dignity, Scott pulled her back. "Yours might be, but _mine_ isn't going to be. We wait another ten minutes!" Penny had to laugh at his determined expression.

"Very well, Scott, if you insist."

They emerged from the bathroom some fifteen minutes later. For the sake of the cameras Penny wore her robe whilst Scott apparently wore only a towel. Hot and steamy, they certainly looked as if they'd been enjoying each other's company. They kissed once more before sliding into bed, burying themselves thankfully under the covers. Scott knew they had to give the blackmailers as much as possible to work with and he hadn't been particularly concerned about this bit. But right now he wished he could go back to his own room. Why had he promised Virgil that he could take Amy back there? Holding Penny as close as he dared, he lay still. He knew he wasn't going to get any rest that night, too terrified to let himself relax just in case his – or her – hands started to wander as they slept. He lay there reflecting on what had just happened, embarrassment gradually fading as he considered the likely consequences. He was satisfied that they'd done enough to get the blackmailers' interest and he was hopeful of tracing them, as well as their friends in the local police.

However, if Scott had been privy to a conversation which had taken place as the band played, he wouldn't have felt nearly so confident...

* * *

Rob Hall – or Robin Halliday as his mother would have called him – wasn't in the best of moods that night. Almost a week of hiding out in a sparsely furnished room at the back of the hotel, relying on his accomplices for food and drink, had left him short-tempered and ready for a fight. He'd had a narrow escape the night Vince Ferdinand was attacked, receiving a warning just a few minutes before Vince's attackers had reached his room. He'd only had time to grab a couple of things before making a run for it. The next thing he knew, having settled himself in his new room, was that his old room had been set on fire and no one knew anything about the people responsible. Assuming that they were still out there he'd lain low, coming out at night for some fresh air and the odd consultation with his accomplice, but wary of venturing too far from the safety of his hideout until he'd been able to make some changes to his appearance.

News of his replacement hadn't gone down well. The one thing he'd been unable to do was contact Amy and the report that she'd taken a fancy to Virgil Tanner hadn't been well-received. Watching the new pianist the night the fire alarms had gone off, he'd had to restrain himself from charging up to him and warning him off. Only the presence of his brother had stopped him. Then he'd been told that Amy and Virgil had got even closer. He'd have to bide his time, but he swore that the pair of them would be sorry they'd ever met.

In the meantime he had more pressing concerns. He'd done well out of the blackmailing, but he hadn't made enough to start a new life. For that he needed to get a lot more out of his victims. But that was difficult without the evidence which he'd hidden, of all places, in his music case. It should have been safe; after all, it never left his sight. Well, almost never. At least, he always knew where it was. Anyway, who'd have expected to find a list of names amongst the music? Who'd have thought to look in the pocket for the memory cards containing all their blackmail material? And who'd have thought he'd have been stupid enough to have left it in Amy's room after a rehearsal? Of course, she did have a knack of making a man forget even the most important things... But the fire had complicated everything. Amy had been moved out of her room, taking just a few essentials, all the rest of her things - including his music case - packed up and stored along with the possessions of the other staff members who'd had to leave their rooms. It would have been a hopeless task trying to find it. Still, it was probably safer in the storeroom than it would have been anywhere else. Even so, when everyone had been allowed back to their old rooms he'd been relieved, waiting for his chance to reclaim his property. He'd looked forward to Amy's reaction when he reappeared – he'd never believed her rejection of him would be permanent. Nevertheless his priority had been to recover his evidence. But when he'd sneaked into her room to find the case as she'd sung in the bar the previous night, it hadn't been there. He couldn't believe it! What had she done with it?

Of course, it didn't take a genius to work out where it had gone. Tanner had to have it. What did Amy think she was doing, giving away his things? He swore once again that he'd make her sorry, but he could only do one thing at a time. First he had to find his music case.

Forgetting his promise to meet his accomplice in the rehearsal studio, he made his way into the ballroom and came to a halt amongst the tables, oblivious to those around him as he stared furiously across the packed dance floor towards the stage. Tanner was doing well – oh, there were a few little mistakes, but even so, with just a couple of days' rehearsal he was doing far better than he himself would have done. He'd prayed the newcomer would make a mess of things – it was _his_ band, he should have been indispensible, but they seemed to be perfectly happy without him. Another reason to hate him.

A tap on his shoulder made him jump and he turned to see the man he'd intended to meet glaring at him.

"What the hell are you doing in here?"

"Relax, it's dark, no one's spotted me. My own mother would be hard pushed to recognise me right now."

"That's not the point. There's no need for you to be here."

"I just wanted to get another look at this guy."

"Yeah, well now you've seen him let's get going. Your music case is in the rehearsal room – I saw Tanner with it earlier on. Of all the stupid places to hide the evidence..."

Deciding this wasn't the time or place for an argument, Rob Hall allowed the other man to push him out of the ballroom. They walked round to the studio in silence. Opening the door they looked around. Rob moved across to the piano and let out a triumphant cry.

"Here it is!"

Sitting down on the piano stool he opened the case.

"What the-?"

"What's wrong?"

"This isn't my case." He turned it around and glared balefully at the initials _VT _emblazoned on the front. "It's Tanner's."

"Now what do we do?" The other man couldn't hide his anxiety.

"We've got to find my case. He _must_ have it. Where the hell has he put it?"

Hall flicked through the music in Virgil's case, paling as he came across some of his own annotated copies. He pulled the sheets out, going through them more carefully this time. His heartbeat gradually slowed as he realised there was nothing incriminating in the pieces Virgil had taken, but even so, if he'd gone through the rest he'd have found the list of names. Hopefully it wouldn't mean anything to him though – after all, he was only a pianist, wasn't he? ..._Wasn't he?_ Rob froze as he opened the front pocket of the case and slipped his fingers inside. The object he found was small, but as he drew it out he knew immediately what it was.

"We've got a problem..."

His accomplice swore as he realised what he was looking at.

"A bug?"

"Yeah." Rob looked across at the other man. "He's onto us. He must be. Him and his brother. They're here to find us."

"And Tanner's got your case with all the evidence!"

"I know. " His mind was working frantically. "But he can't have realised yet otherwise he'd have come after you. Look, just calm down. The band won't rehearse again for a couple of days and he's got all the music he needs for now. We'll just leave his case here and he'll be none the wiser. But now we know what they're up to... We have to get them out of the way."

"_What?_"

"Virgil and his brother – what's his name?"

"Scott."

"Yeah, Scott. Start thinking. How are we going to get rid of them?"

"It might not just be the two of them," the other man said thoughtfully. "Scott's been spending a lot of time with one of the guests – a Lady Penelope. They seem to be getting quite friendly. Either he's just out to enjoy himself while he's here or she's part of it too."

Rob considered this for a moment. "Well, best be on the safe side. Think of some way of getting rid of the three of them. Give the others a call, let them know what's going on. Little 'accidents' are our friend's specialty remember? Maybe he can come up with something to help us out instead of just making life difficult for Connie. In the meantime, act normally. And tomorrow, get into their room and see if you can find my case. I'll feel a lot better when we've got our evidence back."

"Okay. I'll set up a couple of bugs too. Maybe they'll give themselves away."

Leaving the studio they parted, one returning to his comfortable room to let his accomplices know the new problems they were facing, the other to skulk back to his more basic accommodation to plot revenge against his girlfriend – he refused to accept her assertion that they were finished – and the man she'd chosen to replace him, the man who was apparently out to catch him. Virgil Tanner, or whatever his real name was, was going to be sorry he'd ever heard of Bailey's!


	8. Chapter 8

_Thank you so much for the reviews of chapter 7. It was definitely my favourite one to write and it's good to know it went down well. Whirlgirl – I thought Scott was just dragging things out but you've got me wondering too now... _

Chapter Eight

After the awkwardness of waking up next to Scott, who had been laughably desperate to make his escape from her room, practically running out of the door, Penny decided to head down to the spa before breakfast. She needed to think and one of the most effective ways she'd found of clearing her head and organising her thoughts was to relax in the steam room. Like everything else about Bailey's, the facilities at the spa were superb and she was soon settled on the tiled bench, her head tilted back as she gazed up at the sparkling lights in the ceiling. Every so often they changed colour and she was soon lulled into an almost hypnotic state. As she considered everything she'd learned so far about events at Bailey's – although the occasional memory of the previous night's escapade with Scott kept creeping in to distract her - she began to get her ideas in order, planning her next move and making a mental list of all the points she wanted to follow up. She only had one more day at Bailey's before she returned home to await the hoped-for blackmail message. Then she would return and focus her attention on the police captain who had been identified by Dion Lombardi. Parker would remain at the hotel to help Scott and Virgil with the search for the other blackmailers and the person who was causing so much trouble for Connie.

She'd enjoyed being the only occupant of the steam room and she couldn't help feeling a moment's annoyance as the door opened. Irritation turned to exasperation as two young women stepped in, chattering away and completely spoiling the mood for her. Wishing she could order Parker to throw them out she directed a meaningful glare towards them which they totally ignored. Sitting back she tried to recapture her train of thought, but her concentration was lost_. Time to go_, she thought, rising from the bench and heading for the door.

The door didn't open. Penny pushed it harder but it still failed to move. Wondering what was going on she turned back to the two women who hadn't noticed her failed attempts to leave. Before she could say anything there was a sudden, violent hissing from the steam pump.

One of the women screamed in agony as a scalding burst of steam hit her leg. She pulled her legs up onto the bench and stared in horror at the pump which seemed to be experiencing some problems. The temperature began to rise sharply as boiling hot steam rushed in, making it hard to see clearly – or to breathe.

Realising they were in trouble and mindful of the previous disasters which had struck Bailey's, Penny shoved at the door as forcibly as she could. The hot steam was beginning to burn her and she reached for the emergency alarm next to the door. It didn't come as any surprise when it failed to go off. Banging on the door, she wondered if anyone would hear her. With no means of contacting Parker or the Tracy brothers – she cursed herself for not bringing anything other than a towel with her – Penny felt totally helpless. She knew that none of them would last long in this heat. Was she about to become the victim of another 'accident' at Bailey's? One thing she was absolutely sure of - this was no accident. Oh, she could believe in a malfunctioning piece of equipment - though under the circumstances it would have been something of a coincidence. But there was no way the door should have jammed. This was deliberate.

The other two girls joined her and the three of them pushed at the door. Penny felt a slight give and encouraged her companions to try again. In desperation the three shoved with all their might and finally the door flew open. They stumbled outside, collapsing onto the ground. Penny gratefully drew in a few deep breaths, taking a moment to recover before turning to the others.

"Are you alright?" she asked weakly.

One of them nodded, but the one whose leg had been scalded began to whimper with pain.

"Stay here," Penny said. "I'll get help."

Wondering why there was no one around – the spa was usually quiet at this time of the morning but certainly not deserted like it was today, she headed off to the pool which was just a short distance away. To her relief Scott had just come on duty and she called out to him.

Scott stared at her in surprise. The usually composed Penny was breathless, her hair wild. He'd never seen her like that before - not in public anyway – and though her appearance immediately brought back memories of the night before, he knew straight away that something was very wrong. Jumping down from his lifeguard's chair, he ran towards her.

"What's happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Scott. Someone else needs help though." Penny explained what had happened as they made their way back to the spa, pausing every so often to draw in a deep breath.

As they approached the entrance they both came to a halt, exchanging confused looks.

"That wasn't there when I came here," Penny finally said, looking again at the printed notice which informed guests that the spa was experiencing mechanical problems and was out of use for the day. "No wonder no one came to our aid."

"You think someone deliberately trapped you in there?" Scott asked. "I can't believe this was an accident."

"It would appear so," Penny said thoughtfully. "But we know Bailey's has had a lot of 'accidents' lately. I suppose I could be just another random victim. I hope so - I'd hate to think our blackmailers have worked out that I'm here to catch them. It would be a shame if last night was all for nothing."

Scott hoped so too – otherwise he and Virgil might also be in danger. He certainly didn't want to think that his efforts of the previous night had been wasted.

Sending Penny to summon more help, Scott checked the steam room. The room was free of steam now, the pump having apparently burned itself out, though hot water still dripped from it, pooling on the floor. Checking the door, Scott realised that the catch had been twisted just enough to jam the door shut. There was no way it could have been an accident. It was just as well Penny had had company – there was no way she'd have freed herself if she'd been alone.

He turned his attention to the two women who had been trapped with Penny. As he examined the injured woman's leg, Scott asked them if they'd seen any 'keep out' signs or noticed anyone hanging around. When they replied in the negative he felt a little easier. Surely the perpetrator would have ensured that Penny was alone if it had been a targeted attack? He supposed it really could be another one of the incidents which were conspiring to ruin Connie and her hotel. He wasn't entirely convinced, though...

As various hotel staff arrived and Connie herself descended to take charge, he pulled Penny to one side, asking her if she wanted him to escort her to her room.

"Really, Scott, I can take care of myself. And you should be back on duty at the pool. Don't worry about me."

Scott smiled at this typical response. He looked at Penny closely.

"You're sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine, Scott. At least, I will be after I've attended to my hair... and perhaps a manicure would be in order. I appear to have broken a nail. Most annoying. Perhaps I could meet you and Virgil later to discuss our next move. I had a few ideas before I was interrupted."

"Okay. Better get yourself tidied up first though. Just as well this didn't happen yesterday - I don't think I'd want to seduce a woman with bad hair and a broken nail!"

Penny looked at him thoughtfully. "A repeat performance of last night might be in order, you know. After all, you did come to my aid and I am extremely grateful... It would seem to be the natural thing to do."

Scott could only stare at her dumbly as he tried to work out if she was serious.

Laughing at his obvious discomfiture Penny headed off for some much-needed beauty therapy.

* * *

Virgil was at the pool begging Scott to tell him exactly what had happened with Penny when Miguel came looking for him, much to Scott's relief.

"Sorry to interrupt. Have you got a minute, Virgil?"

"Sure, what's up?"

Miguel handed him a sheet of music. "I've always wanted to do this one. What do you think?"

"You've got to be kidding," Virgil replied. "That's got to be the piano equivalent of running a marathon uphill into a force ten gale – backwards!"

"Yeah, thought so," Miguel laughed. "Rob couldn't do it either. Maybe one day we'll find someone who's up to it." The challenge was obvious and Scott rolled his eyes, knowing full well that Virgil would rise to the bait.

"I didn't say I couldn't do it," Virgil said indignantly, snatching at the music which Miguel had taken back. "I just said it wasn't easy. Give me some time to practise. "

"You're on," Miguel agreed with a wink at Scott. "I'll leave you to it then. Be ready to rehearse it tomorrow afternoon."

"So, let's get back to business," Scott said once Miguel had gone. "I'm on duty for another hour. Why don't you go and see what Penny and Parker have been up to?"

"Later, maybe – I need to practise," Virgil said, getting up and heading off to the rehearsal studio. Scott sighed. What with the demands of both Amy and the band, Virgil really wasn't being much help with this investigation. Still, at least it had put a stop to all the teasing about Penny. For now at least...

* * *

A couple of hours later Virgil was tired but happy. He refused to be beaten by a rock song, not when he could play the most complex classical piano pieces. It was just a question of practice. Taking a break for a moment he wandered to the window and looked out across the golf course. The sound of the door opening startled him and he turned round to see Connie Hyatt walk into the room. Virgil was struck by how tired and depressed she looked.

"Are you okay?" Virgil asked. There was a long pause and he wondered if she'd even heard him. Finally she sighed and shook her head.

"Not really. I'm frightened, Virgil. Penny and those girls could have been killed. Why would anyone do something like that? Is it really just to get at me? Maybe I should just close down before someone else gets hurt. The hotel might be finished anyway. People are beginning to grow suspicious and it's only a matter of time before the press get hold of the story. If news of the blackmailing gets out as well then that will be it."

"That doesn't sound like you," Virgil said, with some concern. The tough woman he'd met just a few days ago seemed to have crumbled.

"I don't want anyone else to get hurt." She was silent for a moment. "Penny told me the police might be involved. No wonder they didn't take me seriously when I told them about all the problems I've been having."

"Even so, you should still tell them about everything that happened this morning. It might look suspicious if you don't. We don't want them to know we're onto them."

"I've already done it. But what's the point? You might suspect Richard - and goodness knows he's the only person I can think of who'd want to ruin me - but unless you can prove it..."

"Give us time. It's only been a few days. We'll get there."

She sighed, apparently unconvinced.

Virgil thought for a moment then sat back down at the piano. Gently touching the keys he began to play the introduction to one of Connie's most well-known songs. She looked at him in surprise, then smiled as she realised what he was doing.

"Well, I suppose you would understand the best way to cheer me up." She came to stand beside him, then she began to sing softly.

"I'm surprised you know that one," she said as the song ended. "That must be older than you are."

"It's one of my father's favourites," Virgil replied, beginning another song from Connie's repertoire. For the next twenty minutes they worked through a therapeutic music session with Connie gradually becoming more like the tough, no-nonsense businesswoman of old.

"Thank you, Virgil," she said finally, surprising him with a kiss on the cheek. "You know what? I think I still have something to offer this hotel. Maybe I'll even start singing again. Perhaps you'd like to accompany me if I worked out a set for us?"

"I'd like that," Virgil said, turning back to the complicated score he'd been working on. Connie looked at it and laughed. "Let me guess - Miguel has ideas for some new songs? That looks difficult, though."

"Well, I couldn't refuse a challenge."

"You're a better pianist than Rob - I'm sure you can manage it. Just make sure you don't tire yourself out before tonight. Nine till eleven in the bar – don't be late!"

Virgil laughed. "Well, you're certainly back to normal. Guess I'd better go and find Scott, see if there's any more news."

Connie watched him as he left the room, feeling more like her usual stubborn self. No one was going to ruin her or destroy her hotel! She just hoped Virgil, Scott and Penny would find the people responsible before there were any more incidents.

* * *

Alan made a triumphant return to Tracy Island that Sunday afternoon. He'd enjoyed his little mission and he'd been delighted when he'd found some useful information. It was something of an anti-climax when his father immediately presented him with a list of tasks which he expected him to get started on there and then. Despite being less than enthusiastic at the prospect of getting straight back down to work, he fully intended to do as he was asked. But then he ran into Tin-Tin and he couldn't resist the opportunity to tell her all about his trip. Before he knew it, it was dinnertime and he hadn't even read the list his father had given him. He decided to have a quick stroll down to the beach before heading back to his room to work. But when he reached the beach he found Tin-Tin waiting for him and soon work was the last thing on his mind.


	9. Chapter 9

_A big thank you for all the reviews. Another new chapter - at least I don't get Virgil-style nerves about posting. (Not like I did with my first story!) Bee_

Chapter Nine

Sunday night found Virgil sitting at the piano happily playing whatever took his fancy. His nerves weren't nearly so bad now that he'd survived playing with the band on Saturday night – though as usual he hadn't been able to eat anything before his performance - and he was actually starting to enjoy himself. His thoughts drifted away and he wondered what his life would have been like if he'd decided to study music instead of engineering. He didn't regret his choice for a minute. He didn't think he'd have been half as useful to International Rescue and he couldn't really imagine doing anything else with his life right now. Even so, he was glad to have the opportunity to experience a different way of life for a while. Maybe his father had been right to ground him – he was certainly feeling a lot more relaxed than he'd done for a long time. In fact, he wouldn't have minded staying longer than two weeks. Of course, having Amy around made all the difference. This kind of short-term affair wasn't really his thing, but he was certainly enjoying himself while it lasted. And on the subject of affairs... he wondered what Scott was up to. He'd expected to see him in the bar that night and he wondered if Scott was deliberately avoiding him. His brother had been decidedly reticent about the previous night's events and Virgil was determined to find out what had really happened. Scott couldn't hide from him forever and he looked forward to getting his revenge for all the teasing questioning he'd had to endure over Amy.

Returning his focus to his music but still only half-aware of his surroundings, he was suddenly brought back to reality with a shock. Glancing idly around the bar he caught sight of the Duchess, sitting alone at a corner table. Mindful of Scott's embarrassment as he'd spoken of her attempts to get his interest, he watched her for a moment, then was horrified as she looked up, caught his eye and smiled invitingly. Hurriedly looking away, he waited for a moment then looked back. She was still staring at him with a definite look of interest on her face. She winked at him and his fingers almost slipped off the keys in panic. He didn't dare so much as glance in her direction for the rest of the evening, but he was horribly aware that she hadn't taken her eyes off him!

It was a relief when his stint in the bar came to an end and he could leave. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the Duchess slowly rising to his feet and he almost ran out of the room.

"Virgil? Where are you going in such a hurry?" He'd forgotten Amy had been sitting in the bar waiting for him to finish.

"Uh, just getting some air. Come on, let's go for a walk." Almost dragging her to the door he was relieved when they made it outside and he could feel safe again.

It was a beautiful night, the kind he experienced every night on Tracy Island. But it just wasn't the same back home where he didn't have a girl to enjoy it with. It was some time before they headed back to the hotel. By then it was late and, being a Sunday, the hotel was quiet. Letting themselves in through a side entrance, they made their way through dimly lit corridors towards the staff quarters. Virgil suddenly realised he was starving.

"Let's stop off at the kitchen," he suggested. Amy wasn't surprised - he'd raided the fridges the night before too.

Approaching the restaurant they heard a noise. It sounded as if someone had dropped a plate or something. But it was past midnight. No one should have been in there at that time. Coming to a halt Virgil peered through the glass door.

"What's wrong?" Amy asked.

"Ssh," Virgil whispered. Sure enough he could see the bobbing light of a torch at the other end of the room. "Something's going on in there."

"What?" Amy asked, coming to stand beside him. Seeing the torchlight for herself she turned to Virgil. "Do you think someone's setting up another 'accident'?"

"Wouldn't be surprised," Virgil muttered, coming to a decision. "Look, you go and find Security. I'm just going to keep an eye on them."

"Don't go in there," Amy said in alarm. "I don't want you ending up like Vince."

Virgil had to remind himself that she knew nothing about the blackmail plot and had no idea who he really was. He was certain this wasn't the person who had beaten up Vince Ferdinand. But it might be his chance to catch Rob Hall or to find one of the other people responsible for all the trouble at Bailey's. He gave her a gentle push.

"Go on, I'll be fine."

She didn't look convinced, but she headed off obediently, thinking that the sooner she got Security the sooner she could get Virgil away from there.

As soon as she'd rounded the corner of the corridor Virgil activated his watch to alert Scott, Penny and Parker, quickly explaining what was going on but not waiting for any replies. Then he watched as the light from the torch disappeared, the holder having apparently gone through the kitchen doors. Not wanting to lose track of the suspect, he slowly inched open the restaurant door and slipped through.

There were no windows in the door to the kitchen. Hesitating for a moment, Virgil decided to risk opening it a fraction to see what was going on.

At the other end of the room was a figure dressed in black, a baseball cap covering their hair. All Virgil could work out from the height and build was that it was a man. He watched as his suspect turned a key then opened the door of a storeroom and went inside.

"Perfect," Virgil smiled to himself, slipping into the kitchen and heading over to the storeroom. Pulling the door shut and turning the key he paused for a moment, happy with his night's work. Scott and the others should be there in a few minutes and then they could discover who their mystery man was. But his triumph was short-lived. A noise behind him alerted him to danger but he had no time to turn around before something hard connected with the back of his head and he crashed to the floor. He wasn't conscious when his assailant opened the storeroom door to release his accomplice. The two men then dragged him outside and into an outbuilding which held one of the hotel generators.

"How hard did you hit him?" the man who had been locked in the storeroom asked, looking down at Virgil in frustration. "He can't tell us anything now. "

"He'll be okay," Rob Hall replied. "We'll take him somewhere quiet. Go and get a golf cart. I don't fancy carrying him."

Once the other man had gone, Rob crouched down next to Virgil.

"Enjoying yourself with Amy, are you? You're going to tell me what you've done with my music case and then I'm going to make you sorry you ever laid eyes on my girl."

He was startled when the door slammed open and his accomplice barged in.

"Someone's coming! We have to get out of here."

"Did you get the cart?"

"No time. We'll have to leave him."

Rob looked down at Virgil in fury, unable to believe he'd lost his chance to get even with his replacement and track down his blackmail tapes. He couldn't risk capture. Even so, maybe there was something he could do to make sure the night's efforts hadn't been completely wasted.

"Get going. I'll be right behind you."

"But..."

"Go on. You don't want to get caught, do you?"

The other man looked uncertain, but the prospect of discovery wasn't appealing and with a last suspicious glance at Rob Hall he left him to it.

"Sorry, Virgil," Hall said, quickly unscrewing one of the pipes on the generator. "Guess you won't be sticking your nose in any more. Poor Amy, losing two boyfriends in as many weeks. But at least she'll be seeing one of us again."

Striking a match he threw it at the puddle of oil which had flowed onto the floor. As the flames began to spread he looked across at the unconscious Virgil with a smile, then made a hasty exit. Hearing footsteps coming from his left, he headed off to the right, down towards the gardens where there were plenty of places to hide.

As Penny rounded the side of the building she caught sight of a dark figure running into the distance. About to follow, wondering if it was Virgil or the man he had been shadowing, a flash of flame caught her attention and she realised that there was a fire in the outbuilding in front of her.

"Virgil?" she called softly. When he didn't respond she headed for the outbuilding, calling as she did so, _"Parker!"_

She heard a cry behind her,

"I'm on it, Milady!"

Parker flew past her, reaching the door and shaking the handle violently. The door didn't open and there was no key – whoever had started the fire had apparently taken it with them. Mindful of the heat he could feel through the door, he hurled himself against it. On the third attempt the door gave way. Ignoring the smoke and flames he rushed inside.

Hovering anxiously, Penny realised someone was missing. She put out an anxious call for Scott.

"Scott, Virgil needs help. Where are you?"

To her relief Parker emerged through the smoke unscathed, a body slung over his shoulders. Moving a safe distance away he laid Virgil on the ground before turning back to the burning building.

"You put out that fire, Parker," Penny instructed. "I'll take care of Virgil."

To her relief he was breathing, though he didn't respond when she called him. The sound of running footsteps alerted her that someone was coming and she assumed it was Scott. Instead, Amy and Jason Kerr appeared. Amy let out a frantic cry as she dropped to her knees beside Virgil. Kerr swore and stared at the generator room for a moment before heading off to help Parker.

"It's alright," Penny said to the distraught girl. "He'll be fine." She hoped so, anyway.

Amy didn't look convinced. Suddenly fire alarms began to sound throughout the hotel and Penny wondered what the guests would say to yet another interrupted night's rest. At least they couldn't complain about a false alarm this time. Glancing over to the generator room she saw that the fire appeared to be dying down. Then, to her relief, Parker finally came out of the building, somewhat smoky and sooty, but none the worse for his heroics.

"'Ow is 'e?"

Penny sighed as Virgil started to stir.

"I think he'll be alright, Parker. No burns, thank goodness. He's got quite a bump on his head though."

Parker frowned and looked around. Quite a few people were converging on them. Connie came hurrying over, calmly taking control, assertive and confident even in robe and slippers. Happy that Virgil was beginning to come round, Penny left him and headed over to a quiet corner to put out a call to Scott. She was becoming increasingly worried about the oldest Tracy brother. If Virgil had been deliberately targeted, maybe Scott was in trouble too. Between her own narrow escape earlier on and the attack on Virgil, she was in no doubt that their true reason for being at Bailey's had been discovered.

It was a relief when Scott finally answered, sounding out of breath as he told her he was on his way, admitting he'd fallen asleep and missed Virgil's initial call for help. Penny was surprised at this. She'd always assumed that even the quietest whisper that one of his brothers was in trouble would have roused Scott Tracy and she guessed he was going to feel pretty guilty at not being there for his brother.

Looking across at Virgil she saw that Amy had been joined at his side by the one woman she knew Virgil really wouldn't want to see as he regained consciousness – the Duchess of Derwent. But before she could go over to rescue her friend, Scott arrived, dropping to his knees beside his brother.

"_Virgil!"_ He looked at him in concern. Amy put a hand on his arm, a little surprised to feel him shaking.

"I think he's okay. He seems to be coming round."

"The poor boy," the Duchess murmured, reaching out to smooth back Virgil's hair, much to Scott's annoyance. He knew his brother wasn't going to want to deal with her but he didn't know what to say without sounding too rude. He was saved from saying anything as Virgil groaned and opened his eyes.

"Hey, Virg," Scott said with relief. "You okay?"

A groggy Virgil looked up at Scott, Amy and the Duchess.

"Ow," he moaned, touching the bump on his head.

"Don't do that," the Duchess said, taking his hand to stop him doing it again and looking a little hurt when he pulled it away. Amy looked at him anxiously.

"Virgil, we should get you up. My room's nearby. We can take you there."

"No, my dear," the Duchess said, with all the confidence of one used to having her every wish granted. "I'll look after him. My room will be more comfortable."

"I'm sure he'd rather be with me."

"You're not going to argue with a guest are you, my dear?" The Duchess's tone was sharp, putting Amy well and truly in her place.

"But..." Amy looked at Virgil who was staring from one woman to the other in confusion.

"I..."

"Don't talk," the Duchess said gently, taking his hand once more and holding on tightly this time as he tried in vain to escape.

Despite his concern over his brother Scott couldn't help smiling as Virgil looked at him in desperation. "Where do you want to go, Virg?"

"I think... I just want to go back to my own room. Scott, will you take me?"

Trying not to laugh at the disappointed looks on both women's faces, Scott pulled his brother to his feet. Once he was sure Virgil was steady, he put an arm around his shoulders and began to help him back to their room.

"Thanks, ladies," he said. "I'll look after him. He'll be as good as new tomorrow."

The two women watched the Tracy brothers as they moved away, casting irritated glances at each other before parting. Neither saw Penny watching them in amusement. She guessed she'd better have a chat with the Duchess and warn her away from both Virgil and Scott – but it was certainly fun to see them so worked up.

Scott got Virgil back to their room and laid him down on his bed. Virgil told him what little he knew about what had happened then Scott relayed his story to the others. He too had guessed their cover had been well and truly blown and he instructed Parker to keep a close eye on Penny. But at that moment he was more concerned about Virgil.

"How's the head?" he asked sympathetically.

"Okay. I just want to get some sleep." Virgil closed his eyes.

"Virg?"'

"What?"

"If I hadn't been there, what would you have done?"

Virgil opened his eyes. "I'm just glad you _were_ there."

"So? Amy or the Duchess?"

"Not exactly a difficult choice."

"Ah, but you heard the Duchess. She's a guest, she can boss us employees around. Maybe you should have gone with her after all. I'm sure she'd have looked after you. I'm hurt you know – I thought she liked me best."

"Just leave me in peace, Scott." Virgil was tired and irritable, but seemingly none the worse for his experience. Scott smiled. He was relieved the Duchess's attention had been deflected from him, but even so, he wouldn't have wished her on any man, let alone his brother.

" Get some sleep, Virg, you'll probably have the pair of them fussing over you in the morning. You need to get your strength back. I'll call Dad and let him know what's happened."

Virgil settled down and closed his eyes. "Night, Scott."

"Hey, Virg, just one thing." Scott just couldn't resist.

"What?"

"You didn't answer my question."

"Scott..."

"Yes, Virgil?"

"If you hadn't been there..."

"I'm listening..."

"I'd have been begging Parker to let me share his bed! Now shut up and let me sleep. Unless you're ready to tell me about last night with Penny, that is."

Scott laughed. "You're right, Virg, you should get some rest. No more talking. I'm just going to call Dad, okay?"

If Virgil hadn't been so tired he'd have pushed his brother a bit more, but it could wait till morning. He was soon fast asleep.

Scott updated his concerned father on the night's events then checked on his brother one more time before settling down for the night, though he'd be waking Virgil up every couple of hours, just to check he was okay. He wasn't too worried about him though - his father was right, this sort of thing happened fairly frequently and he'd seen Virgil in far worse condition than this. He was glad to lie down himself, though. His head was aching and he was feeling a little sick. In fact, he'd felt pretty rough all evening, intending to join Virgil in the bar but crashing out on his bed instead. He couldn't believe he'd been so deeply asleep that he'd failed to hear Virgil when he'd called for help. He was immensely grateful to Parker for his actions in saving his brother, but, as Penny had predicted, he felt utterly guilty at not being there himself. Turning out the light he closed his eyes, but then a wave of nausea swept over him and he headed for the bathroom to get a drink of water. Looking in the mirror he frowned when he realised how pale he was looking. Splashing cold water over his face with shaking hands, he headed back to bed. A good night's sleep would put him to rights, he thought. He hoped so, anyway. The last thing they needed was for him to fall sick.


	10. Chapter 10

_Another big thank you for the reviews - they really do make my day! Whirlgirl - thanks so much for all your comments - you're right, 'stray details' are much more fun than simply telling the whole story!_

Chapter Ten

Virgil awoke late the next morning with a pounding headache and the feeling that something was very wrong. Carefully opening his eyes and squinting across the room he wasn't surprised to see Scott's bed empty, but the fact that it was unmade was more of a puzzle – it may have been years since Scott had left the Air Force, but his old habits of leaving his quarters immaculately clean and tidy hadn't disappeared. Virgil didn't have the energy to wonder about it right now, though. Lying back he closed his eyes again, but something nagged at him and he couldn't settle back down to sleep. Then he realised what was wrong. Grateful as he was for an uninterrupted night's sleep after his adventures of the night before, he knew that it shouldn't have happened. Why hadn't Scott woken him periodically as he'd intended? And where was he now? He wasn't on duty at the pool until later that afternoon. Suddenly Virgil was worried. He called out for his brother,

"Scott? You here?"

There was no reply. Virgil was just about to put out a call via his watch when he heard a faint moan. His headache forgotten, he was out of bed and at the bathroom door in an instant, shocked to see his brother leaning against the wall with his head in his hands.

"What's wrong?" Virgil asked with concern, noting how pale his brother looked.

Scott only managed another groan before he crashed to his knees and began to be sick. Virgil could only watch helplessly.

"_Scott?_ What's the matter?"

It took Scott a minute to recover enough to answer.

"Sick."

"I can see that. What's brought this on?"

"Don't know. Something I ate, maybe. Didn't feel so good last night." Another wave of sickness hit him and Virgil ran a facecloth under cold water, handing it to his brother when he'd recovered.

"Thanks," Scott gasped, holding the facecloth over his face for a moment, grateful for its coolness.

"How long have you been like this? You should have told me."

"Couple of hours. Didn't want to worry you." Scott said weakly. He looked up at his brother and Virgil could see that his eyes were barely focusing. "You okay? Meant to check on you but I guess I must've fallen asleep."

"I'm fine. Better than you anyway." Virgil sat down beside him trying to work out what to do. "I'll get you a doctor."

"Don't need a doctor," Scott insisted through gritted teeth. Virgil wasn't surprised by the comment and he felt a little reassured. Scott was still his normal self. Even so, he knew his brother couldn't be left like this.

"Stay there, I'll get help."

"Don't want a doctor," Scott slurred again. Insisting he felt a little better he started to get up. A wave of dizziness swept over him and Virgil caught him as he stumbled. He helped his brother back to the bed and looked down at him anxiously.

"You look terrible."

Scott didn't reply, having drifted into semi-consciousness as soon as he'd hit the bed. Virgil sat back down on his own bed, watching his brother uneasily. Suddenly his watch vibrated. It was Penny.

"What is it, Penny? I'm a bit tied up at the moment – Scott's sick."

"Scott too? Half the staff seem to be collapsing. Something's very wrong. Are you alright, Virgil? You look awfully pale."

"I'm fine." Well, apart from the headache, but he wasn't going to tell Penny about that, not when there were more important things to worry about. "Does anyone have any idea what's wrong?"

"Well, Connie thinks that only the staff who live on the premises are affected. They all seem to have eaten in the canteen last night."

"That would make sense. I didn't eat anything last night, but there was nothing wrong with Scott's appetite. It could just be food poisoning, I suppose, but it seems a bit of a coincidence don't you think?" Virgil was inclined to suspect the food had deliberately been tampered with.

"You're probably right. The local hospital is sending a team of doctors down here so they'll run some tests. I'll let you know when they arrive. You'd better stay with Scott."

"Okay. Let me know if there's anything I can do."

"Well, at this rate Connie might have you cleaning the rooms and cooking dinner, but we'll worry about that once we're sure everyone's going to be alright."

Virgil frowned as he ended the conversation. Checking on Scott who appeared to be fast asleep, he sat back and wondered what to do next. Whether this was just another one of those incidents designed to hurt Connie, or whether it was a deliberate attack on Scott he didn't know. But following the attacks on Penny and himself he had to assume that their true purpose in being at Bailey's had been discovered. Even so, poisoning half the staff just to get as Scott seemed a bit drastic. Maybe this really was just another one of the incidents designed to make life difficult for Connie. Pondering the possibilities made his head hurt though so he gave up, getting himself a glass of water and some painkillers before calling Tracy Island to break the news to his father. As Virgil had anticipated, the news didn't please Jeff, especially coming so soon after the attack on his middle son. His father was frantic with worry about both his boys, but Virgil was starting to feel better and he reassured his father that he was fine, promising to keep him updated on Scott's condition before signing off.

Checking his brother over once more he was dismayed to see that he was deteriorating rapidly. He didn't respond to Virgil's increasingly desperate attempts to wake him.

"Scott? _Scott!_" Virgil was shouting now but Scott didn't seem to hear him. He shook his brother's shoulder, then, when that didn't have any effect, grabbed both shoulders and shook him more violently. Scott didn't stir. Virgil could feel how hot he was and as he listened to his breathing become louder and harsher, he knew something was terribly wrong. Hands shaking, he activated his watch and put in a frantic call to Penny, demanding that she get a doctor over as soon as possible.

Virgil could tell that Penny's legendary calm had been shaken by his call and there was the hint of a tremor in her voice as she promised to get help straight away. All Virgil could do then was wait. He debated whether to call his father again then decided there was no point worrying him further until he had more concrete news. Returning to Scott, he continued to try to rouse him, panic starting to take hold as his brother failed to respond.

* * *

Back on the island Jeff was discussing the situation with Gordon. Concerned about both Scott and Virgil, he'd been debating whether to take a trip to Bailey's himself and the two of them were considering the practicalities of running International Rescue with so many operatives away from base.

"I think-"

Jeff was cut off mid-sentence when Alan burst into the room.

"Dad! There's a problem at the hotel!"

"Calm down, Alan. What problem? Something other than the food poisoning?"

"You know about that?" Alan stared at him, his dismay obvious.

Jeff looked at him curiously. "Yes, I know. I've just been speaking to Virgil. But how do you know?"

Alan hesitated. The pause was long enough for Jeff to become suspicious.

"Alan?"

Gordon came over to his brother.

"Al? What's going on?"

Alan drew in a breath. "The thing is... You know I was supposed to go through the information we got from the bugs in Richard Bridges' office..."

"Yes." There was a sharp edge to Jeff's voice. Like Gordon he hadn't failed to notice the word 'supposed'.

"Well, I guess I must have got... er... side-tracked last night. I kind of forgot to check to see if anything had come up. I've just been going over it now and I found something. You need to hear this, it's from yesterday afternoon."

He turned to his father's computer, well aware that Jeff was just biding his time to interrogate him. 'Side-tracked' didn't quite go far enough to cover what he'd really been up to, but he'd missed Tin-Tin when he'd been away and one thing had led to another...

Jeff and Gordon listened as Bridges' voice filled the room. The voice on the other end of the phone line was indistinct and no names were mentioned, but as the conversation went on it became clear that their suspicions of Bridges had been justified.

"All set?" Bridges asked. "I'll head up to the canteen later and put the stuff in the food."

The other voice – a man's, but that was all they could work out – said something, causing Bridges to raise his voice in reply.

"I know what I'm doing! You know yourself those berries aren't fatal. But let's see Connie run her hotel with half the staff off sick. Just don't forget to eat a little bit yourself – you can exaggerate the symptoms, but it's best not to arouse suspicion. If we're seen to be affected then no one will think we had anything to do with it."

There was a pause as the other speaker went on at some length. When he spoke again Bridges sounded shaken but no less adamant.

"You'd better hope he finds it. We need that evidence – sooner or later we're going to have to make a run for it. The more money we get before then the better."

The call ended as Bridges replaced the phone and Alan stopped the playback.

Jeff was silent for a moment and Alan watched him nervously, bracing himself for the explosion he knew was imminent.

"What time did he make this call?" Jeff finally asked.

"Just before four pm," Alan told him. He could see Gordon shaking his head out of the corner of his eye, but he kept his gaze fixed on his father.

"Four pm!" Jeff was obviously making an effort to keep his temper under control. "So if you'd picked up on this when you should have done instead of hours later, we'd have been able to warn Scott and Virgil. They could have got to Bridges and found out exactly what was going on."

"They can go now if you tell them though, can't they?" Alan asked tentatively.

"Well, Virgil might, if he's up to it, which right now I very much doubt. He was attacked last night. Parker had to drag him out of a burning building."

Alan looked alarmed, glancing over at Gordon for reassurance. It wasn't forthcoming. Gordon knew what was coming next. He understood his father's anger at his younger brother – right now he didn't feel too kindly towards him himself. Jeff went on,

"And as for Scott – he ate in the canteen last night. He's sick, just like half the other staff. Alan, if we'd known we could have stopped this."

Alan felt even worse than he had before. Scott poisoned along with any number of other people? If he'd done his job properly they'd all be okay. He wanted to say something but the words wouldn't come and he just looked dumbly down at the floor.

"So what exactly _were _you doing which was more important than your job?" Jeff finally asked.

Alan was lost for words, looking over to Gordon once again, hoping for salvation. For once though, his brother was quiet, not even meeting his eyes. Disapproval from Gordon was a rare experience and Alan knew he was in real trouble.

"Let me guess," Jeff went on coldly. "Tin-Tin disappeared yesterday evening – Brains wanted her to give him a hand with the modifications to Three. Am I right in guessing that she was with you?"

Alan nodded miserably, unable to meet his father's eye. Of all the times to have this conversation... he'd assumed his father knew about their relationship, just as his brothers did, but until now no one had ever said anything. Of course, until now his relationship with Tin-Tin hadn't been an issue.

Jeff exploded in fury, something he rarely did, usually preferring calm discussion or cutting expressions of disapproval.

"What the hell were you thinking, Alan? Oh, I forgot, you _weren't _thinking were you? Thanks to you Scott could be in all sorts of trouble."

He registered Gordon taking a call from Penelope but all his attention was on Alan.

"I've not said anything about you and Tin-Tin before this – it's not been an issue until now. The only people who might have a problem with your relationship are your brothers – heaven knows it can't be easy for them watching the two of you carrying on when they have no hope of meeting anyone right now. And what about Kyrano? Does he know about all this?"

Alan shook his head. "Are you going to tell him?" he whispered.

"No," Jeff said. "I think it should come from you. But I think perhaps I should have a talk with Tin-Tin."

Alan couldn't have gone any redder. "_Dad! Please..."_

"Dad!" Gordon's interjection couldn't have come at a better time for Alan. Hoping his brother was going to help him out Alan was horrified as Gordon continued,

"That was Penny. Scott's in a bad way. They're taking him to hospital."

"What?" Jeff and Alan were stunned.

"Virg called her to say that Scott was getting worse so she sent a doctor over. I told her what we found out so at least she can tell the doctors what they're dealing with. Apparently there's some kind of plant with poisonous berries which is native to the island. It grows wild around the hotel grounds and the guests are warned about it when they arrive. Penny thinks it's probably that."

Jeff leaned back in his chair, rubbing a hand over his eyes. He looked over at Alan who looked utterly distraught.

"Alan-"

His son interrupted him before he could continue.

"Don't say it, Dad. It's all my fault. Like you said, if I'd done what I should have the boys and Penny could have stopped all this happening and Scott wouldn't be sick."

Jeff agreed. "That's something you're going to have to come to terms with yourself, son. But in the meantime I'm more concerned that you start thinking seriously about your behaviour. Maybe I should send you up to Five. Perhaps when you're free of distractions you can get a better idea of how you should conduct yourself from now on."

Alan stared at him in desperation. "Five? But I'm not due up there for another two weeks." Worse than that, it was Tin-Tin's birthday next week. They had tickets for a festival on the mainland and they'd been looking forward to it for months. He guessed that was another reason his father was sending him away. No more fun with his girlfriend until he worked out how he was going to combine his work with his personal life. As if he didn't feel bad enough that Scott was ill when he could have prevented it from happening.

Jeff had already turned away from him, putting in an anxious call to Virgil.

"Virgil? I'm on my way. This is getting serious. First you get attacked, now Scott's sick. I want to see what's going on for myself. Book me a room, son."

Virgil could hear the sound of another voice in the background.

"Actually, make that two rooms. Gordon insists on coming with me."

"What about International Rescue?" Grateful as he was for his father and brother's support, Virgil wondered what they'd do if there was a callout.

"We're quiet at the moment and it won't take Thunderbird One long to get over to us if we're needed. Right now I'm more worried about you boys." Jeff studied his son carefully. "Are you sure you're alright, Virgil? Maybe you should get yourself checked over when you get to the hospital."

"I'm fine, Dad. I'm more worried about Scott. Let me know when you get here."

"I will. I'll get Alan to take us over in One – we'll be there as soon as we can. Let me know if there's any change in Scott's condition."

He sat back as he disconnected the call then looked up at Alan. "Pleased with yourself? Not only are your brothers out of action because of your carelessness, but if a call comes in for International Rescue there will be no one here to take it."

Alan stared at the floor once more, his face scarlet. His father really knew how to pile on the guilt – as if he wasn't feeling bad enough as it was. And he didn't even want to think about what Tin-Tin would say when she found out, especially after he'd assured her that he'd finished his work and really did have the time to spend with her.

"Right, make yourself useful. We need to pack. Have Thunderbird One ready to leave in an hour. Oh, make sure you check the rest of the information from Bridges. Let's hope there's nothing else you've missed."

Jeff stormed out of the room, leaving Alan to look miserably at Gordon.

"Sorry," was all he could say. He could tell by Gordon's uncharacteristically stern expression that an apology wasn't going to be good enough, but he didn't know what else he could do.

"Guess you'd be better off apologising to Scott – and the rest of the staff," Gordon told him grimly before heading off to get himself ready. He'd been desperate to get himself to Bailey's, but not under circumstances like this.

A disconsolate Alan turned back to the computer to review the rest of the information transmitted from the bugs in Bridges' office. Ten minutes later, feeling even more useless and guilty than he had before, he was on his feet and yelling for his father.


	11. Chapter 11

_Thanks for the reviews of the last chapter. I thought it was time Alan got a share of the action as he's not played much part in my previous stories – though he may well be wishing I'd just left him alone! Bee_

Chapter Eleven

Alan replayed the conversation he'd just listened to, bracing himself for the explosion he knew would follow. Sure enough he could see his father growing increasingly furious as he sat and listened to a later conversation in which Bridges and a different man - the voice was slightly higher in pitch than before - cursed Virgil for his lack of appetite before he played in the bar that night.

"He didn't eat anything. I didn't get a chance to spike his drink either – he only had water and the taste would have been too noticeable. I got the other one's coffee though – a nice strong dose to add to what he got from the food. He won't be bothering us for a while."

In response to the other man's next muffled comment Bridges replied,

"I'm not sure about this, Rob. I know you've got your own issues with Virgil, but don't forget, we need him to be able to talk to us. You're sure you can do this without hurting him too much?"

Jeff and Gordon looked at each other as Alan paused the recording.

"Well, there's proof of Bridges' connection with Rob Hall," Gordon commented.

"But why does he have a problem with Virgil?" Jeff asked.

Gordon and Alan exchanged glances though neither seemed inclined to enlighten their father. Alan waited for a moment then continued the playback. Bridges seemed unconvinced by Hall's next, indecipherable comment.

"Well, make sure you try. I'm in deep enough as it is, poisoning the staff isn't going to be brushed off as another accident, you know. Just find out what we need to know and keep him out of the way for the next couple of days."

There was some more indistinct mumbling before Bridges spoke again,

"Okay, I'll be ready. But he'd better not get a look at me. So far they don't seem to be onto me and I'd like it to stay that way. At least, there are no bugs in my office, we checked. And talking of bugs, the ones in the Tanners' room aren't working. They haven't picked up a thing and I know the pair of them were in there earlier."

Despite his growing fury that Alan had managed to miss information which would have prevented Virgil from being attacked, Jeff managed a half-smile at Bridges' comment, once more grateful for Brains' genius. His new bugging device was practically undetectable. Just as well or they'd have had no idea what was going on. He'd also created a jammer which Virgil had set up in the room he shared with Scott, just in case. It too appeared to be doing its job. He'd have to tell Virgil about the bugs – maybe they'd offer some clue as to who had placed them in the room.

Bridges was speaking again. "No, he had a good look around when he placed the bugs but he didn't find anything. Look, it's getting late. I'm out of here. I'll see you later."

There was silence as the playback ended. Once again Alan couldn't look at his father or brother. He hadn't thought things could have been any worse, but now, knowing that he could have saved Virgil a lot of pain, he felt even more distressed.

"So," Jeff finally said. "Not only could you have stopped Scott and the others from getting sick, you could also have stopped Virgil being knocked out and nearly burned alive." He shook his head. "I think you've got some apologising to do to your brothers, Alan. Perhaps on your way up to Five you can think of some way to make it up to them."

"Dad, I'm really sorry."

"I know you are." Jeff could see his youngest son was distraught and he did feel a little sorry for him, but even so, he had to be made to realise how irresponsibly he'd acted. "Alan, you have to make sure nothing like this ever happens again. Come on, get moving, Gordon and I need to be on our way."

Alan got up to prepare Thunderbird One. He'd usually be thrilled at the prospect of taking her out for a flight, but right now the thought of being in his brother's 'bird knowing Scott was in a hospital bed because of him just filled him with misery. Maybe he really would be better off on Five for a while – the thought of being on the island facing the disapproval of the rest of his family wasn't an engaging prospect. And as for what he'd say to Tin-Tin... He just hoped his father wouldn't embarrass her too much. Even so, he feared she'd never speak to him again. As bad as he felt about what had happened to his brothers, he felt worse about the threat to his relationship – that was one thing he really did take seriously.

Gordon watched Alan as he left the room. He would have tried to help his brother out but right now there were more important things to worry about. He'd call him later from Bailey's when everyone had had a chance to calm down.

"Dad, if they wanted Scott and Virgil out of the way then they must know for sure they're not really there to work at the hotel."

"You're right. Virgil could still be in danger – at least if he's at the hospital with Scott he should be safe enough for now."

"Yeah, but what about Penny? They must have realised that her performance with Scott was just a charade. Yesterday morning must have been a deliberate attack on her."

Jeff looked grim. "Then the sooner we get there the better."

When Gordon left the room to pack, Jeff put in a call to John. Having explained what had happened, he told him to prepare to return home. But to his surprise, John was unconvinced of the wisdom of putting Alan up on Five.

"Think about it, Dad. If a call does come in there's only going to be me, Tin-Tin and Brains to deal with it. We'd be better off with Alan there as well. Much as I hate leaving her alone, Five will be alright on auto for a couple of days. And I can keep an eye on Alan for you. I've got plenty of jobs for him to do - he won't have a minute to spend with Tin-Tin."

"Maybe you're right," Jeff sighed. "I know he's upset about Scott and Virgil. I just hope he's learned his lesson. The rest of you have had to give up an awful lot for International Rescue. I wonder if he knows just how lucky he is. If you think he can be useful to you on the island then I'll go along with it. But I expect him to be kept busy. And if he starts slacking I want to know immediately."

"Okay, Dad," John agreed. He felt sorry for Alan, but at the same time there was a certain sense of satisfaction. Certainly he and his other brothers had all, at one time or another, expressed their frustration at Alan having things so easy. But he was still glad to have saved the kid the stress of being alone on Five to contemplate what he had done. He knew how hard the isolation could be even when you didn't have a truckload of guilt and shame to deal with.

Jeff called Alan back and explained the change of plan, making it quite clear that there was to be no more shirking of his duties. He was instructed to take Thunderbird Three up to collect John on his return from dropping his father and brother off in the Seychelles, though Brains would be his co-pilot on the trip, not Tin-Tin. Jeff made it quite clear he didn't trust the two of them to be professional, reiterating his intention to discuss the matter with Tin-Tin, refusing to cave in to Alan's increasingly desperate pleas.

As it turned out though, there were some things which even Jeff Tracy couldn't handle and at the last minute he delegated the task of talking to Tin-Tin to his mother. He didn't want the embarrassment and anyway, he had no experience of dealing with young girls. These kinds of conversations had been awkward enough when he'd had them with his sons! He never knew the details of their discussion, but when he spoke to his mother later she assured him that Tin-Tin was horrified at what had happened and absolutely livid with Alan. Jeff felt a little sorry for his youngest boy – the lecture he'd given him was nothing compared to the one he was going to have to endure from his girlfriend and he thought Grandma would have a few things to say too! But Jeff was satisfied that between Tin-Tin's disapproval and the guilt he was feeling over his brothers, Alan was going to be a lot more responsible in future. It was a hard lesson, he thought, but Alan would be all the better for learning it.

* * *

Checking in at Bailey's under their real names since John had had no time to organise fake identities, Jeff and Gordon separated, Gordon heading off to find Penny, whilst Jeff made his way to the hospital. He could only hope that no one was watching Scott's hospital room to wonder why Jeff Tracy was visiting Scott Tanner.

Gordon had been hoping to get the chance to tackle Bridges, but the man was apparently still suffering the effects of the poisoning and was keeping himself hidden in his room. He couldn't wait to make him pay for what he'd done, though he thought he might have to take a place in line behind Scott and Virgil. Maybe Parker and his father too. He couldn't help feeling just a little bit sorry for the hotel manager. In the meantime, he headed off to the pool, smiling as he spotted Penny on a lounger, Parker lurking in the bushes nearby just in case another attack was made on his employer. They merely exchanged pleasantries, not wanting to give away their connection. Anyway, they'd spoken at length during the flight over and there was nothing new to report. Penny soon headed back to her room and Gordon was left to enjoy the delights of Bailey's which he'd been dreaming of for so long. As he'd suspected, the pool was full of girls who were immediately impressed with his prowess in the water and he soon found himself a few admirers. He was only sorry Scott wasn't there to witness him in action! With an agreement to meet up with one of the girls later that evening, he headed back to the hotel to see if he could do anything else to help Penny.

By the time Jeff arrived at the hospital his eldest son was feeling better, having slept for most of the day. Getting a heads-up on the cause of the poisoning had meant the doctors could administer the appropriate drugs quickly and Scott was well on the road to recovery. Virgil looked worn out though and Jeff took charge, ordering his middle son to get some sleep on the empty bed the other side of the room. Virgil didn't put up much of a fight and he slept for the next four hours whilst Jeff watched both his boys anxiously, wondering how they always managed to get themselves into so much trouble.

When both his sons were finally awake and feeling better, Jeff told them what he'd found out from the bugs in Bridges' room, passing on Alan's heartfelt messages of apology. Whilst not exactly happy about suffering unnecessarily, both Scott and Virgil were pleased to finally have some concrete evidence. They both expressed their desire to get to grips with Bridges, though in Virgil's case he'd have been happier to have had Rob Hall in custody.

* * *

That evening Virgil returned to Bailey's, leaving Scott in his father's care. Feeling perfectly fit once again, he went up to the hotel to help out where he could since so many of the staff were out of action. He found himself waiting on tables in the restaurant, much to the amusement of Gordon who sat at the table next to Penelope and took great delight in being a difficult customer, playing the part of spoilt rich playboy to perfection. When Virgil had taken back an order for the third time, fighting the temptation to just throw the food over his brother's head, Gordon sat back with a smile.

"This is fun."

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Gordon?" Penny asked, leaning over a little to whisper to him. "Virgil seems rather annoyed with you."

"Oh, don't worry about that. Virgil will understand I'm just getting in character."

"Yes, well don't forget that your brother was knocked out last night and he's been looking after Scott all day. Perhaps you should save your characterisation for another time."

"Virgil's alright. He's used to it." But this time Gordon simply thanked his brother when he returned and behaved himself for the rest of the meal. Trust Penny to be on Virgil's side, he thought.

As he left the restaurant he couldn't resist teasing his brother one last time.

"Come here, boy," he called to his brother, trying not to laugh at Virgil's expression. "Here you go, don't spend it all at once." He tucked a hundred dollar bill into Virgil's shirt pocket, patted him patronisingly on the shoulder, then beamed at Penelope as he left the restaurant. Virgil had never been so glad to see the back of his brother.

Returning to the kitchen he sought out the boy who did the washing-up.

"Here," he said, handing him Gordon's money and smiling at the boy's delighted confusion. "Some guy on table four told me to give you this."

As soon as his duties in the restaurant were over, Virgil made his way to Gordon's room, glancing behind him every few moments just to check he wasn't being followed. He knew from his brother that the security cameras would be out of action, just in case anyone was tracking him, but even so, he didn't want to risk revealing his connection to the new arrivals. When he finally reached his destination, his father, Gordon and Penny were already deep in discussion. Only Parker was absent, having also volunteered to help Connie and still hard at work in the bar.

"Hey Virg, can I have my money back now?" Gordon asked.

"Sorry, Gordy, spent it already," Virgil said, throwing himself down on the bed. "Tell you what, guys, however much you usually tip, in future double it. That's hard work."

Reassuring his son that the cameras and listening devices he'd found in the room had been deactivated, Jeff reminded Virgil of the conversations they'd overheard and played him the recordings. Virgil sat quietly and listened. He felt a little sorry for Alan, but his own experience hadn't been pleasant and he'd been worried sick about Scott. He'd have liked to have been able to avoid both incidents. Resolving to call his brother later he turned his attention back to the discussion at hand.

"So," said Jeff, "How far have we got with all this? Penny?"

"Well, Jeff, we know Rob Hall is hiding out somewhere, presumably on the hotel grounds. Parker has been searching – he's not in any of the empty hotel rooms. But there are any number of outbuildings where he could be hiding. Or his accomplice could be allowing him to stay in his room. There's no way of knowing. Parker will continue his search of the hotel grounds tomorrow. Perhaps Gordon could help."

"Sure. But what about this Bridges guy?" Gordon asked. "When are we questioning him?"

Penny smiled. "As he indicated, he ate some of the poisoned food. He's been in his room all day. The doctor who examined him said he was definitely sick, though how far he exaggerated his condition is anyone's guess. I suppose we have to decide whether to make our move on him now or continue to monitor him in case we can discover the identity of his accomplice."

"He's not going anywhere, "Virgil said. "Maybe we should wait and see what he does next."

"Those phone calls he made," Jeff mused. "The second one was to Rob Hall, but the first... It's evidently someone on the staff, someone who also appeared to be sick. Penny, can you get me a list of anyone affected."

"I've already done so, Jeff," Penny smiled, handing him a piece of paper.

Jeff frowned. "That's a lot of people." There were over twenty names.

"Yes, Connie thought she might have to close the hotel, but she seems to be managing. Fortunately the hotel is quiet on a Monday. If it had been a weekend she'd have been in real trouble."

Virgil took the list. "We can discount a lot of them – for a start we know Bridges' friend was a man." He found a pen and began crossing off names. Coming to one he paused.

"Jason Kerr? We've wondered about him – he was one of Rob Hall's best friends. We haven't been able to connect him with any of this yet, though."

Penny agreed. "He seems to be our most likely suspect. And part of his job involves liaising with the police. Don't forget the information Alan found for us. That's another aspect of the investigation we need to consider."

Jeff thought for a moment. "This is getting very complicated."

"You're telling me," Gordon agreed. "And there's the magazine connection. John's going to try to trace the journalist. Oh, Penny, I forgot to tell you, John found out that your 'fiancé', Lord Ramsey, is one of the major shareholders in the publishing company. Perhaps he can exert a bit of influence to help us find out who's selling the pictures."

"I'll call him later," Penny said. She glanced down at her engagement ring and pulled it off. "It appears that I no longer need to pose as an unhappy bride-to-be. If we'd found out sooner that we were under suspicion Scott and I wouldn't have had to put on a show for the cameras." She smiled at the memory. "He did a good job though, once he'd got over his initial embarrassment. Perhaps I should call on him for any future assignments of this nature."

Jeff wasn't quite sure what to say to this. He'd refrained from asking Scott about his night with Penny when his son had reported in the next day, but he'd been struck by the fact that for the first time in his life Scott hadn't been able to look him in the eye as he'd mumbled something unintelligible. It wasn't a subject he'd be pursuing, but he pitied his son having to fend off four more curious and less tactful brothers.

"Yes, I think we can safely say no one will try to get the evidence from the camera in your room. Maybe you'd better retrieve it yourself though, just in case it falls into the wrong hands."

"That's a good idea, Jeff. Gordon, perhaps you can assist me later."

"Sure, Penny," Gordon agreed before turning to his father. "So what are we going to do about the guys and Penny?" he asked. "They've been rumbled, someone's already tried to put them out of the way."

"You're right." Jeff turned to Penny and Virgil. "I think you have to decide if you want to stay on here. Gordon and I can continue to investigate if you'd prefer to leave."

He felt he had to make the offer even though he knew exactly what the response would be. Sure enough both of them were appalled by the suggestion. He knew Scott would feel the same way.

"Very well, then, you stay. But be careful. Particularly you, Virgil."

"Why me?"

"Because Rob Hall was only supposed to knock you out, not lock you in the generator room and start a fire, remember," Gordon told him. "He went a lot further than Bridges expected. He obviously doesn't like the fact that you've taken his place – in every respect, eh?" He winked at his brother who blushed, guessing Scott had told Gordon of his involvement with Amy.

Jeff didn't seem to notice his son's embarrassment, simply nodding in agreement. "Yes, you need to be on your guard, Virgil. He may well come after you again."

"Well if he does it gives us a chance of catching him." Virgil yawned. It had been a long day.

A knock at the door made them all jump, but it was Parker, come to escort Penny back to her room.

"One other thing," Penny said as she rose to leave. "Vince Ferdinand. One of the doctors I spoke to told me he's being released tomorrow. Connie is going to fire him but he'll be coming back to pick up his things. Perhaps it might be worth having another word with him."

"We still don't know who attacked him," Virgil commented.

Penny sighed. "We still have a lot to do."

"Well at least Scott will be back tomorrow to give us a hand," Jeff said, also rising to his feet. He put a hand on his middle son's shoulder as he too attempted to make a move. "Virgil, you stay with Gordon tonight. I don't want you on your own."

He couldn't fail to notice the horrified expressions of both his sons.

"But..." Gordon spluttered, his plans for the night ruined.

"Dad, I don't..." Virgil hadn't planned on spending the night alone anyway. Amy hadn't been one of the poisoning victims and she was expecting him at any moment.

"No arguments," Jeff said firmly. "We had enough drama last night."

Gordon and Virgil glared at their father then at each other before sitting back down sulkily.

"Connie has a meeting with the police tomorrow," Penny said as she headed for the door. "The doctors reported the food poisoning. It will be interesting to see if they dismiss that as they have everything else that's happened. I intend to sit in on the interview. Maybe I'll raise the question of blackmail. After all, I have nothing to lose now by revealing my true purpose in coming to Bailey's."

"Just be careful," Jeff said. "Our blackmailers don't have a whole lot to lose now, either."

It was a sobering thought. Jeff wondered if, despite their precautions, he and Gordon had also been identified as enemies of the blackmailers. They would all have to be on their guard.


	12. Chapter 12

_Thanks to everyone who's reviewed or put this on alert. It means a lot to know you're enjoying the story and the reviews often give me ideas. (Whirlgirl, I really wish I could reply to you, your reviews are always helpful as well as entertaining!) I had a bit of fun with a few last-minute changes to this chapter – a big thanks to Math Girl for the inspiration!_

Chapter Twelve

When their father and Penny had gone Virgil and Gordon sat quietly for all of two minutes before making a break for freedom.

"I really don't need you to babysit me, Gords," Virgil said, checking his appearance in the mirror. "It's not like I'm planning on wandering round the hotel anyway. I'll just go over to Amy and leave you in peace."

"Glad to hear you say that," Gordon said, elbowing his brother out of the way as he ran a comb through his hair. "I was looking forward to a bit of fun myself. You wouldn't believe what it's been like on the island knowing you and Scott were enjoying yourselves here. Of course it doesn't help that my room's next to Alan's..."

Virgil turned to look at him. "How do you know Scott's been enjoying himself? What's he told you?"

"Nothing." Gordon looked back at his brother. "I was hoping you could fill me in."

Virgil shrugged. "I know as much as you. He's keeping very quiet about that night with Penny. You don't think-"

Both men were startled by a sudden loud knock at the door. Looking at his brother warily Gordon called,

"Who is it?"

"Your father." The reply had both brothers groaning. Pulling a face, Gordon opened the door, hoping he could get rid of his father quickly. It didn't look likely though as Jeff stepped into the room holding a bottle of very expensive whisky.

"I thought we could spend a bit of time together since you can't go anywhere tonight. Get some glasses, Gordon."

Gordon would have laughed at the uncharacteristically murderous look Virgil shot his father - who was thankfully oblivious as he busied himself with opening the bottle - but he wasn't feeling too happy himself at that moment and he guessed his own expression mirrored his brother's. Forcing a smile onto his face he did as he was asked. When all three were settled back in their chairs Jeff raised his glass.

"To our success in catching the blackmailers." Looking at his sons fondly he took a sip of his drink. "Well, isn't this nice? It's not often I get to have a drink with you boys without worrying in case we get a callout."

"Great Dad."

"Can't think of a better way to spend the evening."

If Jeff noticed a certain lack of enthusiasm in their responses he didn't say anything. He smiled to himself though, wondering if his boys had really believed he'd give them the opportunity to wander around whilst Rob Hall and his associates were at large.

Virgil fidgeted for a while, before jumping up. "Dad, I'd better call Alan. I haven't had a chance yet."

"Good idea, son."

As Virgil headed out onto the balcony, commenting that he'd like a bit of privacy, Jeff turned to Gordon.

"So, what do you think of Bailey's?"

"Well, I haven't had a chance to see much of it yet..."

Out on the balcony Virgil did call Alan, careful not to make any reference to International Rescue or his real mission at Bailey's, just in case anyone was listening. First though he called Amy, apologising for his absence and telling her he had another headache. He had a job to persuade her not to come round to look after him, promising her he'd be fine by the morning. Ending the call, he briefly considered climbing down from the balcony, but he knew he'd be banished up to Five if his father caught him. Why did he have to choose tonight for a bit of father-son bonding? He loved the man, he really did, but sometimes he could strangle him!

It was late when Jeff left. By then Virgil had fallen asleep, sprawled out right across the bed, much to Gordon's annoyance. Knowing from experience that Virgil would be impossible to wake after a few drinks, he tried to get comfortable in his chair. His visit to Bailey's certainly wasn't living up to his expectations. Still, there was always tomorrow. Scott would be back to keep an eye on Virgil and he could make up for lost time.

* * *

The following morning, Penny had just finished doing her hair and make-up when there was a knock at her door. Expecting it to be Parker or one of the Tracys come to escort her to breakfast, but not foolish enough to open up without checking first, she was surprised to discover the Duchess of Derwent on the other side of the door.

"Margaret, what a surprise."

"Penelope. We need to talk."

If Penny was surprised by the Duchess's unusually businesslike tone she didn't show it.

"Is something wrong?"

"I think you know there is."

Penny looked at her appraisingly. She knew the Duchess well, though more by reputation than from personal acquaintance. Margaret Forsyth, as she'd been in her younger days, was, in many ways, Penny's inspiration. Rumour had it that as a young woman she'd been a highly successful spy, using her great beauty to her advantage to extract the information she needed from her targets. Penny had suspected that perhaps incipient senility or the desire to relive the excitement of her long-lost youth had led her to Bailey's and the pursuit of young, attractive men. The situation had amused Penny, especially as she'd watched Scott and Virgil crumble in terror before her. But the woman who now stood before her was, contrary to her previous demeanour, in full possession of her faculties and apparently extremely worried. Penny wondered if she'd been a little too quick to judge her.

"I've heard rumours about you, Penelope," the Duchess continued. "I believe we may have something in common. I trust you know about my escapades from my younger days?"

"The rumour mill has been turning somewhat merrily it appears," Penny said guardedly.

"Are you here because of the blackmail ring?"

Penny looked at her for a moment. "Are you telling me you're being blackmailed?"

"I'm saying no such thing! For heaven's sake, girl, I'm eighty three!"

Penny couldn't help smiling. "But you took such an interest in Scott and Virgil. And I understand Vince Ferdinand took your fancy too."

The Duchess sighed. "I'm going to trust you, Penny. I saw the way you took charge yesterday. You know what's going on and if I'm right you and those boys are here to stop it."

"Very well," Penny said. "Supposing you're right. Can you help me?"

"Perhaps. Though I hope you can help me in return."

The Duchess told Penny how her grand-daughter, escaping to Bailey's following a particularly bitter fight with her husband, had been seduced by Vince Ferdinand. Receiving a blackmail demand a few days after her return home she'd had to pawn her jewellery in order to find the money. But the demands had continued and finally, in desperation, she'd confided in her brother.

"Michael was furious. As soon as Diana told him she realised it was a mistake. She was afraid of what he'd do so she came to me. She knows something of my past. I was able to catch up with him before he came over here and I insisted on accompanying him. I thought I could control him and that we could find this man and make him give up the tapes. I made a play for Vincent – it was quite entertaining really, watching him thinking of the money and trying to hide his true feelings about me. Not that anything happened of course. I just wanted to try to find out who was working with him. It was clear from the start that he didn't have the brains to do this by himself."

"I'm guessing your grandson was the man who beat up Mr Ferdinand," Penny said slowly.

"Yes. Patience isn't his strong point. He dragged my butler along too, unfortunately. They intended to scare Vince and persuade him to give up his accomplices, but things got out of hand. Michael has quite a temper, you see... Vince gave up the pianist, but when Michael got to his room he'd gone. He had a look round but couldn't find anything incriminating."

"I see," Penny frowned, not particularly impressed with the Duchess's grandson's lack of subtlety. "What about the fire?"

"He had a cigarette to steady his nerves - he realised he'd gone too far. He can only assume that he dropped it as he left. My butler alerted him that someone was coming and he left in something of a hurry."

Penny was even less impressed and the Duchess hurried on.

"Anyway, he didn't find Mr Hall there. We've been looking for him and his accomplices ever since."

"So Scott and Virgil..." Penny suddenly smiled.

"Just continuing in my role as a rich, senile old woman who preys on young, good-looking men. And of course I had no way of knowing if they'd been brought in to replace Vince as part of the blackmail gang. But I gather they're working with you? "

"That's right. I think they'll be somewhat relieved to know you don't pose a threat to them. Poor boys. They're terribly brave really, but I think you reduced them to quivering wrecks. It really was quite entertaining."

The Duchess laughed. "Is Virgil alright? I'm actually quite relieved that Scott took him away. Although I suspect that young girl was rather annoyed with me for butting in."

"Virgil's fine," Penny assured her. "Someone is definitely on to us though. Scott was poisoned quite badly but he'll be released from hospital later today."

"So what do we do?" the Duchess asked. "I don't want Michael to get into trouble, however much he may deserve it. I'd like Diana's name kept out of things too if at all possible. She called me yesterday to say she'd had another blackmail demand. If her husband finds out she'll be ruined. The poor girl's frantic with worry."

Penny thought for a moment. "Vince Ferdinand is being released from hospital today. Connie is going to get rid of him, understandably, but I don't want him escaping from us when he leaves here. Perhaps you could look after him for a while."

The Duchess smiled wickedly. "Do you know what, my dear? I rather like that idea. I'm sure I can offer young Vincent some hospitality whilst he gets back on his feet. I 'm sure my family would make him very welcome!"

They discussed ideas for a while. Finally the Duchess rose to her feet.

"Well, that seems to be settled. You'll let me know as soon as you find anything out?"

"Of course. Just don't scare the poor man away in the meantime."

"Oh, I think the prospect of a large amount of money will keep him attentive. Of course, my charm and beauty should be enough really..." She laughed. "You know, I almost feel sorry for him." Her tone grew cold. "Then I think of poor Diana and I wonder how many other women he's done this to."

"Five," Penny said. "He gave me the names. Diana's was amongst them, but I had no idea she was your grand-daughter. Don't worry. We'll put a stop to this, I give you my word."

The Duchess left and Penny headed off to find Connie, pleased that the mystery of Vince Ferdinand's attacker had been solved and altogether relieved to discover that they didn't have another, more dangerous enemy to contend with.

* * *

Gordon met up with Jeff at breakfast, Virgil having left early to help out in the restaurant since several of the staff were still recovering from their bout of poisoning. Jeff's presence had put a stop to Gordon's teasing of Virgil who was once again waiting on them, but despite this early setback he had high hopes for the coming day. They'd nearly finished their meal when Jeff was startled by a large hand which pressed his shoulder as a familiar voice called out,

"Jeff Tracy! Good to see you. How's business?"

Jeff's heart sank as he looked up into the beaming face of one of his business associates.

"Cyrus. How are you?"

Good, good. Is this one of your boys?" He looked at Gordon a little quizzically, much to the younger man's surprise.

"Yes, this is Gordon."

"Nice to meet you," Gordon smiled, shaking the man's hand.

"Gordon, eh?" the man smiled. "Enjoying your stay at Bailey's?"

"Sure," Gordon was surprised when Cyrus winked at him.

"Great place, Bailey's. The staff are always very... attentive." He winked at Gordon again, much to his and Jeff's confusion.

"Cyrus, why don't we get a coffee?" Jeff suggested. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Virgil bringing an order to the next table and whilst he was fairly sure the pair had never met, he didn't want to take any chances.

"Great idea. Lead the way."

Jeff strode off towards the lounge. But Cyrus hung back, putting a hand on Gordon's back and murmuring,

"You'd better be careful. Make sure no one sees anything you wouldn't want your dad to find out about."

Gordon looked at him in complete bemusement. Cyrus laughed and leaned in to whisper,

"Saw your _friend_ leaving early this morning when I got up to go for a run. I've got the room opposite yours. Guess your dad doesn't know, huh? Can't see Jeff being too keen on the idea of his son picking up a waiter..." He let out a laugh at the look of horror on Gordon's face before clapping him on the back once again and following Jeff out of the room.

Gordon stared after him in disbelief.

"Gords?" Virgil had come up to him.

"Don't speak to me!"

"What?"

"I might have to admit you're my brother and I really don't want to!"

"Oh... thanks."

"I can't believe he thinks I... "

"What?"It _w_as Virgil's turn to look confused.

"He saw you leaving my room. I'm never going to live this down. What if he tells Dad?"

Virgil had to laugh - it wasn't his reputation which was going to be ruined. "Dad will know it was me."

"Yes, but he can't tell Cyrus that. And what if he tells anyone else? It's alright for you, he thinks you're just a waiter."

"Just as well he's not likely to talk to Amy," Virgil said. "I'm not entirely sure she believed I had a headache last night."

Gordon shook himself out of the daze he'd fallen into.

"Right, I'm off to the pool."

"Already?"

"And I'm staying there all day! There's going to be a queue of women outside my room tonight. I'll show him what Gordon Tracy's made of."

Virgil had to smile as his brother strode out of the restaurant, leering at any girl in sight and greeting each one with frankly terrifying enthusiasm.

* * *

An ambulance arrived at Bailey's later that morning. Scott and Vince Ferdinand alighted, both released from hospital at the same time. Neither had spoken during the drive back. Scott assumed Vince didn't know his true identity and he didn't want to mess things up for Penny later. He'd had a long telephone conversation with his father that morning as he waited to be discharged and he was fully up to speed with the latest developments. The news about the Duchess had stunned him. Relief had turned to embarrassment as he recalled how nervous she'd made him. Still, it seemed she'd be a useful ally.

Following Vince into the hotel, curious to see what he'd do, he wasn't surprised when the receptionist called over to tell him that Connie wanted to see him. What did surprise him, however, until he worked out what was going on, was the fact that the man completely failed to hear what the woman told him, instead staring across the lobby towards a man who was sitting on one of the couches drinking coffee. Engrossed in his newspaper he apparently hadn't noticed Vince, but the mere sight of him had been enough to unnerve the lifeguard. He was already pale, apart from the bruises, but he lost even more colour and Scott could see he was terrified. He backed away, then turned as if to run, letting out a cry as he bumped into the receptionist who, realising he hadn't heard her, had left her desk to come and get his attention.

"Connie wants to see you," she said, eyeing him curiously.

He swallowed nervously, looking back across at the man who still seemed oblivious to his presence, then headed off towards Connie's office almost at a run. The receptionist stared after him.

"What was that all about?" she asked Scott. "Guess he's still in shock."

"Looks that way," Scott said. He pointed over at the man who had scared Vince so badly. "Do you know who that is?"

She looked across. "Michael Ballentyne. I remember him asking about Vince the other day, come to think of it. He seemed quite concerned about him."

She went back to her duties, leaving Scott to stare thoughtfully across at the man. So that was the Duchess's grandson, the one who'd attacked Vince. He'd thought as much when he'd seen Vince's terrified reaction to him. The lifeguard would be desperate to get as far away from Bailey's as he could, obviously in fear of his life. It looked as though Penny and the Duchess's plan was going to work.

Heading off to his father's room he bumped into Virgil who was just coming out of the restaurant. Fortunately it seemed most of the staff who'd been affected by the poisoning were back on their feet, though there was a certain amount of disquiet and a great deal of resentment towards Connie who, it was felt, had brought nothing but bad luck to the hotel since she took it over. Virgil had had to fight the urge to point out there was no 'bad luck' involved, but, since the news of a deliberate attack on the staff would just make matters worse, he'd kept quiet. Even so, he was glad to get away from the restaurant and put an end to his brief career as a waiter.

He was delighted to see Scott.

"Hey, you're back. How do you feel?"

"Much better. How about you?"

"I'm fine. Did you hear about the Duchess?"

"Yeah. Bit of a surprise, but quite a relief too. And it solves one of our mysteries." Scott smiled. "Say, Vince Ferdinand came back with me. I guess he's going to pack up and get himself out of here."

"Guess so. I think Connie wants a word first though. Penny's going to see if she can get anything else out of him."

"He's in there now. Poor guy. Imagine facing those two."

"Yeah, you have to feel a bit sorry for him. Penny wants to take on Bridges too. I think Dad wants to sit in on that one."

"Talking of Dad, I'm going to check in with him. You coming?"

"In a bit. I just want to see Amy first."

Scott smirked. "Well don't be too long. Sounds like there's a lot to do today. Have you spoken to Alan yet?"

"Last night. I don't think I've ever heard him sound so down. Just about the only word he could manage was 'sorry'. I couldn't stay mad at him, no matter how much I wanted to. How about you?"

"I slept most of the time I was in the hospital. I'll call him today."

A sudden thought struck Virgil. "Are you going to be fit enough to go on duty later?"

"Guess so. I just hope it's quiet down at the pool."

"Actually, I think there might be a few women in need of rescuing."

Scott looked confused, then realisation dawned. "Oh. Gordon?"

"Yep. Trust me, no woman's going to be safe today." Scott was in fits of laughter as Virgil told him what had happened at breakfast. Suddenly he couldn't wait to get on duty. Agreeing to meet Virgil for lunch – Gordon too, if he was willing to be seen in public with Virgil – he headed off to see his father.

* * *

Vince Ferdinand came out of his mercifully short meeting with Connie wondering just what he was going to do. He'd lost his job and there would be no reference forthcoming – or at least not one that any employer would look upon favourably. He hadn't made enough from his participation in the blackmailing to last him more than a few months. He had nowhere to go except back to his family and he wondered how he'd be able to explain his situation. The future looked bleak. It didn't help that he still hurt all over and his face was a mess – he couldn't even rely on charm and good looks to get by right now.

He'd been given another grilling about his attack, this time by a blonde English woman who seemed vaguely familiar, though he didn't think he'd met her before. Apparently she was some kind of investigator. He'd been perfectly open with her, after all he had nothing to lose now and he didn't really know anything anyway. As he pointed out, if he'd known more he'd have told his attackers – anything to avoid the beating he'd been subjected to. When she'd suggested Jason Kerr might be involved he'd considered it carefully, admitting it was possible, but repeating that he really didn't know anything. One thing he didn't tell her was that his attacker was still in the hotel. Although part of him wanted the man to pay for what he'd done, he really just wanted to get away from Bailey's without drawing any more attention to himself.

Peering around anxiously before deciding it was safe to make a move, he headed for his old room. It wouldn't take him long to pack. Sure enough, he was done within fifteen minutes. Taking a last look round he headed back to reception to call himself a taxi – where to he didn't know.

"Vince, darling." It was the Duchess, apparently in the process of checking out. "You poor boy. How are you? Come and sit down and tell me what happened."

For want of anything better to do he did so. Fifteen minutes later he found himself accompanying the woman into her taxi, heading for the airport and a flight to London. It wasn't the most engaging prospect, but at least he'd be away from Bailey's and well looked-after. As for what the Duchess would demand in return... well, he was desperate after all.

Penny and Connie watched him go, trying not to laugh as he fawned over the Duchess, obviously trying to hide his reluctance.

"Dear Margaret," Penny said, sinking down into a chair. "I'd love to see Mr Ferdinand's face when he gets to her mansion only to be confronted by her grandchildren. Serves him right, though. And they'll keep him safe until we can point the police in his direction."

"Not the local police, of course," Connie commented. "Just as well I have friends in government. The justice minister is sending some people down to take charge of the investigation. Are you sure we shouldn't wait for them to arrive before we talk to Richard?"

Penny frowned. "Who knows what sort of damage Mr Bridges might cause in the meantime? Really, Connie, I think we should tackle him now. He might be caught off-guard if you and I speak to him, whereas I believe the police will have some difficulty getting him to talk. After all, the tapes we have aren't exactly admissible as evidence. We need a confession."

"I'm quite glad you said that," Connie said with a grim smile. "I'm looking forward to getting my teeth into that miserable creature. He's not going to ruin my hotel!"

The two women headed back to Connie's office. A few minutes later Richard Bridges was on his way there in response to an urgent call from his employer. The poor man had no idea of what he was about to face, but he wouldn't stand a chance against the combined forces of Connie Hyatt and Penelope Creighton-Ward.


	13. Chapter 13

_As always, a big thank you for the feedback on the last chapter. Whirlgirl - I loved your review and it's given me an idea for something to add to a later chapter - thank you! Bee_

Chapter Thirteen

Richard Bridges was more than a little apprehensive as he made his way to Connie's office. He knew she'd want to discuss the latest disasters to hit Bailey's and he was bracing himself for another lecture about his management skills. But he wasn't worried about that. What he was more concerned about was that the mysterious Lady Penelope might have told Connie what else was going on at her hotel. He'd seen the two of them deep in discussion the night that Virgil was attacked and he wondered if she'd revealed her true reason for being there. He tried to convince himself that he'd be okay, that he'd covered his tracks well enough for her to be unable to actually prove anything against him, whatever she might suspect. But he couldn't quite shake the feeling that he was in big trouble.

Rapping on Connie's door to announce his arrival, he strode into the office without waiting for an invitation. But his composure was immediately shaken by the sight of Lady Penelope sitting in a chair next to Connie. He forced himself to smile and moved to the seat in front of the desk. Sitting back he tried to assume an air of confidence but it became increasingly difficult in the face of the two silent, serious women.

It was Connie who eventually spoke. "Hello, Richard. Thank you for coming so promptly. Are you feeling better after yesterday?"

"I'm fine, Connie." He'd been fine all along of course, exaggerating the mild symptoms he'd experienced after ingesting just a tiny dose of the poison. Even so, he'd felt pretty rough for a couple of hours. He'd even felt a touch of sympathy for Scott Tanner who'd been given a double dose, though he was delighted the man would be out of commission for a few days.

"I think all the staff are back on their feet. Except the new lifeguard of course. I understand he's in hospital, poor guy. First Vince, now Scott – looks like that job's cursed."

"Indeed," Connie said dryly. "But Scott was lucky. The doctors were able to identify the poison and give him the antidote quickly. He'll be out of hospital today."

Both women registered the momentary look of surprise and annoyance on Bridges' face. Penny's eyes narrowed as she looked over at him. She was looking forward to breaking the man down.

"That's good," Bridges said, recovering himself quickly.

Connie got down to business. "I've asked my friend, Lady Penelope, to sit in on this meeting, if you don't mind."

"Not at all," he lied. "Though you've got me wondering what this is all about."

"I've found out who's responsible for all the 'accidents' of the last few months."

"You have?" He'd hoped it was only the blackmail plot which had been discovered. Still, he had to try to bluff it out. "Last time we spoke you put it down to bad management on my part. Does that mean I get an apology? Who is it anyway?"

Connie gave him a withering look.

"No games, Richard. Penny's told me exactly what's going on. I can't believe I didn't realise sooner."

"Realise what?"

"That you're the one responsible for all the things which have been going on here."

"Me? What do you mean?" He forced himself to believe that she had no proof. If she had she'd surely have gone straight to the police and they'd be the ones talking to him. That would have been fine, of course, he'd never face charges – any evidence would be mysteriously 'lost' or witnesses warned off. After all, his friend in the police had as much to lose as he did.

"I know you were bitter when Max left Bailey's to me instead of you, but was it really worth hurting so many people?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." He sat up straight and looked Connie in the eye. "Connie, I swear I've done nothing wrong. Whatever your friend's been telling you, she's mistaken. Yes, I admit I was angry when I didn't inherit the hotel, but I've worked too hard here over the years to want to destroy it."

Connie laughed. "I'd hardly call it 'working hard', Richard. We all know your assistants do most of your duties. You just enjoy the lifestyle. Max kept you on because you were his nephew, but he wasn't so blinded by sentiment that he wanted to give you free rein to destroy his hotel when he was gone."

Bridges flushed. "That's not fair! Bailey's would have carried on just the same if I'd been in charge."

"Yes, that's the problem," Connie said. "The hotel needed to change. You'd have just sat back and let it fall into obscurity. Even so, you did alright out of Max's death. Why did you need to do so much damage here? Surely you couldn't have been so jealous of me that you'd hurt innocent people?"

"Who have I hurt?" Bridges tried to look affronted. "What exactly are you accusing me of, Connie?"

"You want the list?" Connie picked up a piece of paper, glanced grimly across at Penny for a moment then began to read.

Bridges sat impassively as she listed all the thefts from the hotel as well as from the guests. He tried not to react as she gave an account of all the incidents of damage and sabotage. Even so, hearing all his crimes outlined one by one he began to feel increasingly uneasy. Connie seemed to know exactly what he'd been up to these past six months. His eyes flickered across to the other woman, who still hadn't said anything. She watched him coolly, not giving anything away, and he found himself having to make a real effort to keep calm as Connie moved onto the more serious incidents, concluding with the malfunction in the steam room and the attack on Virgil.

"That's quite a list," Bridges finally said, pleased that his voice sounded reasonably calm. "And quite an accusation to make. As I recall the police didn't seem to think there was a problem when you went to them before."

"That was before the latest incidents," Connie said. "The deliberate poisoning of twenty-two of my staff is going to be hard to ignore."

"I take it you're blaming me for that too," Bridges said, rising to his feet. "Well, I'm not sitting here and listening to this. I've got work to do, Connie, whatever you may say to the contrary. You think I'm responsible – go to the police and see if they believe you."

He strode to the door and yanked it open, only to be stopped in his tracks at the sight of Parker blocking his way.

"I don't think 'er Ladyship's finished with you," he said, moving forward and forcing the hotel manager to step back into Connie's office.

"Thank you, Parker," Lady Penelope said with a smile. "Perhaps you could help Mr Bridges back to his seat."

"Anything you say, milady," Parker said, placing a solid hand on Bridges shoulder and pushing him back to his chair. When the man was settled, his nerves betraying him for the first time as he gripped the armrest tightly, Parker took up a position just behind him. Bridges looked back at him nervously then turned to the two women.

"Okay, Connie, what is this? Are you going to beat a confession out of me? I've done nothing. Prove that I have."

"Very well," Penny said. "I think you should listen to this." She began the playback of the conversation with the mystery man, then the one with Rob Hall. Bridges paled as the sound of his voice filled the room and Penny sat back in satisfaction. Although she'd been told what it contained, it was the first time Connie had heard the recording and she regarded her manager with contempt.

When it was over they sat in silence for a while. Bridges considered his options. Surely there was a way out of this.

"Well, Mr Bridges?" Penny asked.

Bridges said nothing for a moment. The only sound was Parker cracking his knuckles ominously. Finally the manager looked up at Penny.

"Okay, I want to make a confession. Give the police a call."

"Oh, we already have," Penny smiled coldly. "But not the local police. My sources tell me that they can't be trusted." She was pleased to see Bridges start nervously at this news.

"The Justice Minister is a friend of mine, remember," Connie told him. "One of my biggest fans. When I told him what was going on he was very helpful. One of his best men is on his way here to investigate."

Bridges' face fell as his only hope of salvation disappeared. He thought furiously. All he could do now was try to salvage as much as he possibly could.

"Don't you have anything to say, Mr Bridges?" Penny asked. "Any information you can give us would count in your favour. I'd like to have this matter resolved by the end of the day – it really is spoiling my holiday."

Bridges stared at the floor for a minute before sighing heavily.

"Okay. I admit I'm responsible for the problems you've been having. I was relying on inheriting the hotel. I've always been a gambler though I never got myself in too deep. But when I found out Max was dying I thought I could take a few more risks. Well, they didn't pay off. I ended up owing a lot of money. My creditors were willing to wait until I got my hands on the hotel, but when it turned out that Max had changed his will I was in real trouble. The thefts were a way of getting hold of some cash to keep them off my back."

"What about all the other things?" Connie asked him.

"That was just a bit of fun, a way to get back at you for taking away my inheritance. I wanted to make life difficult for you. I guess I thought that if things kept going wrong you'd give up and leave the running of the hotel to me. I could have used the hotel funds to pay off my debts."

Connie glared at him. "You should know me better than that."

Bridges shrugged. "Guess so."

"How did you get involved in the blackmail, Mr Bridges?" Penny asked. She was surprised when the man laughed.

"Completely by accident. It was about three months ago. I'd used my pass key to break into one of the guest's rooms. Some guy with more money than sense. He'd gone down to the pool so I thought I'd see what he'd left in his room. You'd be surprised how many people don't bother putting their valuables in the safe. Anyway, I was searching through his things when I heard someone at the door. There was nowhere to run so I dived under the bed. I thought it was the guy come back to get something. But it was Rob. Of course I didn't know that at first, I thought someone else had broken in. I couldn't see much but I saw this guy go over to the TV and start fiddling around behind it. Then he sat down on the bed. The movement must have disturbed some dust because the next thing I know I'm sneezing and Rob's down on his knees looking at me.

"It was a standoff at first. When I got out from under the bed he saw the guy's wallet in my hand and I saw the camera in his. It was pretty obvious what was going on. We ended up joining forces. It was a bit of extra cash for me and Rob got easy access to information about the guests. Things were going fine until the night Vince got attacked. Then Rob went into hiding and you and your friends arrived."

He looked at Penny. "Before you ask, I don't know where Rob is. At first he was hiding out in one of the old rooms we're due to renovate, but once he realised you lot were looking for him he started moving around. He could be anywhere."

"What about the first man on the tape?" Penny asked. "Who else is involved?"

Bridges smiled grimly. "I've said all I'm going to say. You know about Rob so it won't hurt him if I talk about his involvement. But I need to think about myself here. If I give the other guy away we're all finished. I think my silence will be worth something. I'm going to need something to fall back on when I get out of jail."

"That might not be for a long time, Mr Bridges," Penny commented. "Attempted murder carries a long penalty."

"I didn't try to kill anyone!"

"We've got you on tape discussing your role in Scott's poisoning. And I assume you were the man Virgil followed into the kitchen."

Bridges nodded. "But I didn't try to kill them. Rob hit Virgil. I didn't know he was going to try to set him on fire. And those berries aren't fatal. Scott wouldn't have died."

"What about the steam room?" Connie asked. "And the balcony? Not to mention the cleaner who was electrocuted. I'm sorry, Richard, but you're in real trouble. Why not make it easier on yourself and give up your accomplice?"

He shook his head. Even the presence of Parker who had moved into his line of sight and was regarding him unpleasantly wouldn't change his mind. Finally Penny came to a decision.

"Very well, I'll give you some time to reconsider. Now then, we obviously can't turn you over to the local police, Mr Bridges, so if you would just roll up your sleeve for me."

"_What?"_

Parker repeated his mistress's command, moving in a little closer. A clearly terrified Bridges turned back to Connie.

"Connie? What's going on?"

"You really should do as you're told, Richard," she told him with a smile, opening her desk drawer and taking out a syringe which she handed to Penny.

Bridges paled. "What's that?"

"Oh, don't worry," Penny said, approaching him and nodding to Parker who took a tight hold of his shoulder and arm, pushing him tightly down onto the chair. "You've had such a stressful morning, I'm sure a few hours' sleep will do you good."

Despite his struggles it was an easy job for Penny to administer the injection. In just a few minutes Bridges was slumped in the chair, fast asleep.

"Well," Connie said, rising from her seat, "At least I can get myself a competent manager now. And there won't be any more 'accidents'. But we still have to find Rob and the other man."

"Perhaps Mr Bridges will reconsider his decision not to give up his friend," Penny said. "But even if we can't persuade him we still have a few leads to follow. I just hope we can get to the bottom of this before the authorities take over."

"Talking of the authorities," Connie said, glancing at the clock, "We'd better get Richard out of here – the local police chief will be here in twenty minutes. I just hope I can convince him that I trust him."

Penny smiled. "Just tell him about the food being poisoned. You can tell him about the attack on Virgil, too. I expect he's already been told about it by Mr Bridges and the others, so he'll probably be expecting you to mentiion it. Let me know what he says."

"Are you sure you don't want to be here? I thought you were going to tell him about the blackmailing."

"I planned to. But having talked it over with my associates I think I'd be better off waiting. I don't want to give someone else a reason to attack me and it would be a shame if he destroyed any evidence or ran away before he could be called to account. The other police will be here tomorrow and we can inform the captain of the full extent of our knowledge then."

Parker had lifted Bridges onto his shoulders. "Ready when you are, milady."

"Excellent, then let's go."

Connie opened the door which led into her private apartment. She led Parker to the guest room and watched as he placed Bridges down on the bed and began to search his pockets. Taking out his phone he handed it to Penny who began to go through his contacts, calls and messages.

"There are a few calls to and from Rob Hall but nothing to indicate who else is involved," she finally said, placing the phone into her handbag. "I'll have Jeff pass this on to John. He might be able to trace some of the calls. Parker, you stay with our friend. I'm sure you can keep him safely out of the way until the morning."

"So how do we explain Richard's absence?" Connie asked as she followed Penny back to her office.

"I believe the poor man was still suffering from the effects of the poisoning," Penny said. "Perhaps you can spread the word that he's been taken ill and is resting in his room. I'll have Virgil set up a camera in there, then if anyone goes to check on him we can catch them."

"I'll do that." Connie looked across at Penny. "Thank you, Penny. You've saved my hotel. At least I hope you have. I just pray you can catch the blackmailers. If news of that gets out then I really will be finished. I just wish I knew where Rob was hiding. That's the trouble of having so many rooms and such extensive grounds. And now Parker is guarding Richard, who's going to be searching for Rob?"

"Oh, didn't I tell you I'd brought in reinforcements?" Penny asked. "Someone is taking over the search as we speak."

* * *

In fact, right at that moment Gordon wasn't searching the section of the grounds he'd been allocated. Instead he was having lunch with his brothers, having spent a satisfying morning at the pool showing off to an appreciative audience of women. Although he'd calmed down somewhat after the trauma at breakfast and could now – just – see the funny side, he'd refused to risk meeting Scott and Virgil (especially Virgil!) in his room just in case Cyrus caught them going in or out. Scott was in desperate need of fresh air after being stuck in a hospital room for a day and would have liked to have headed out to the beach, but he was forced to agree with Gordon that perhaps it wasn't such a good idea for the three of them to be seen out together just yet. In the end they met up in the room he and Virgil shared, Gordon agreeing that Cyrus was unlikely to be anywhere near the staff quarters, but still waiting for his brothers to check the coast was clear before sneaking in.

Over a quick meal of sandwiches – Scott wasn't entirely sure he trusted the catering at Bailey's anymore, besides he was due on duty after lunch and Virgil had his accompaniment for Connie to practise in addition to the new pieces Miguel had chosen for the band – they caught up on the events of the past few days.

"You seem to be taking to this lifestyle pretty well, Virg," Gordon commented. "Won't you find it hard to leave?"

Virgil considered for a moment then shook his head. "I kind of miss the rescue business. Though I wouldn't mind having weekends off to play with the band."

"And Amy?" Scott teased. "You're going to miss her."

Virgil refused to rise to the bait. Yes, he would miss her, but he'd always known it was never going to last. Although Tracy Island wasn't actually that far away so if things were quiet maybe he'd get the chance to visit now and again. Amy was certainly keen for him to come back – she'd been doing her best to persuade him to stay for good.

Changing the subject he commented, "So, the Duchess turned out to be on our side. I can't get over that one."

"Penny says she had quite a reputation when she was younger," Scott told him.

"I can believe it. You've got to feel sorry for Vince Ferdinand. The poor guy must be terrified. I'd love to see his face when he realises what's going on."

"Do you think Grandma would do the same for us?" Gordon asked. He hadn't met the Duchess but his brothers had left him in no doubt that she wouldn't be his type. Although at the moment he thought he'd invite any woman with a pulse into his room, just as long as Cyrus was there to witness it.

"What? Pretend to seduce some guy?" Virgil's expression of horror brought a smile to Scott's face.

"Well, she always says she'd do anything for us," Gordon grinned.

"Anything but that," Scott said firmly. "Anyway, she'd be too busy lecturing us for getting into trouble in the first place to have time to do anything else."

Virgil shuddered. "Imagine having to confess to Grandma that you were being blackmailed."

Gordon and Scott considered this scenario for a moment, both agreeing that they'd rather clean out their trust funds to pay the blackmailer than face the wrath of their grandmother.

"Mind you, if she caught the blackmailer she'd make him sorry," Gordon pointed out. "She may be small but she's the scariest woman I've ever met."

"How many women _have_ you met?" Scott asked with genuine curiosity and they were back to good-natured teasing about various girls they'd dated over the years.

It was only when Gordon moved on to Penny that Scott decided enough was enough and changed the subject back to the blackmailers.

"I wonder how Connie and Penny are getting on," he said thoughtfully. "I thought we would have heard something by now."

"Well, if they play him that tape he might decide to give the others up," Virgil said. "Hope so, it would be nice to spend the last few days here without looking over my shoulder the whole time."

"It's a beautiful place," Scott agreed. "And it has to be worth a fortune. No wonder he was sore about losing it to Connie."

Virgil rose to his feet. "Talking of Connie, we'd better get back to work. See you later, Gords."

Scott cursed as he checked his watch and realised that he'd be late for his shift at the pool. He hurried off, leaving Virgil to follow at a more leisurely pace.

Gordon waited a few minutes before cracking the door open a couple of inches and looking around furtively before making a run for the safety of the nearby bushes.

* * *

Connie's interview with the police chief went as expected. She said nothing about Bridges or the blackmail plot. The chief made all the right noises, scribbled a lot of notes and promised to find the culprits. Then he left, promising to send some of his men around in the morning. Connie reflected that if she really had been pinning her hopes on him she'd have been seriously frustrated. But the knowledge that the man would soon be forced to face up to his involvement gave her the strength to bite her tongue, thank him for his help and say a polite goodbye.

Returning to her apartment she made a much-needed coffee for Parker and herself. Bridges was still sleeping peacefully, so with a satisfied smile she returned to her office and began drafting an advertisement for a new manager.

* * *

Jeff took a call from John later that evening. Frustrated by Bridges' refusal to give up his accomplice and Gordon's failure to find any clue as to the whereabouts of Rob Hall, he was delighted when his second son had some good news for him.

"I spoke to Adam Stone, the journalist who broke the news about Lombardi and the others. He wasn't too happy about giving up his source, but Penny's friend put a bit of pressure on the magazine's editor so he didn't have much choice in the end. Apparently he stayed at Bailey's about eighteen months ago looking for some good stories. Max Bailey found him snooping around and taking pictures, realised what he was up to and kicked him out. Then about a year ago he got a call out of the blue from someone claiming to work at the hotel, offering to sell him some pictures. He realised he was onto a good thing and went along with it. Every now and again the guy gets in touch by email and the money is sent to a Swiss bank account. It's the same account number Bill was given. It's definitely our blackmailers, Dad."

"That ties up another loose end. But will it help us find the missing blackmailer? Bridges isn't giving anyone away and we're no closer to finding Hall."

"Well, Stone said the guy was British."

Scott and Virgil were listening in. They looked at each other.

"There are quite a few Brits working here..." Scott said.

"But one name does spring to mind..." Virgil continued.

Jeff looked at them expectantly.

"Jason Kerr!"

"We've suspected him from the start," Scott reminded his father. "He's a good friend of Rob Hall."

"But we're going to need some actual evidence," Jeff pointed out. "After all, as you said, he's not the only possibility."

John cut in at this point. "Dad, I've been thinking. I suppose I could hack into the bank account, but it's a big job and it could take days. The whole point of a Swiss account is secrecy. The bank has some of the tightest security in the world. But there might be a quicker way."

"Go on," Jeff said.

"I think I should come over to Bailey's. If I can get access to the computers there I might be able to find some evidence. There are the emails to Stone and I could probably find a link to the Swiss account too. Of course, I'd need to get hold of any personal computers Bridges and Kerr might have – they won't necessarily have used the ones in the hotel."

Jeff considered this for a moment. It would mean yet another man away from International Rescue duties. But if it meant they could sort things out more quickly... He came to his decision. After all, Alan could be with them in no time in Thunderbird One if John – or any of the other boys for that matter – were needed.

"Okay, John. Get yourself over here tomorrow."

Virgil and Scott were delighted at the prospect of a reunion with their brother, though they did spare a thought for poor Alan, left alone on the island whilst his four older brothers had all the fun. They wondered if the thought had crossed their father's mind that John could probably have hacked into Bridges' and Hall's computers from Tracy Island. Still, they couldn't deny that John deserved a change of scene after being stuck up in Five for so long.


	14. Chapter 14

_A huge thanks for the reviews for the last chapter and a massive apology for the late replies to them. It's been a ridiculously busy week - I wasn't sure if I'd manage to get a chapter up tonight, but I've just made it! _

Chapter Fourteen

Penny met up with Parker and Connie early the next morning. Richard Bridges was awake but frustratingly uncooperative, still refusing to give away anything about the other man involved in the blackmail plot. Connie expressed the hope that he might confess once the new police officers arrived, but Penny wasn't so sure. If the man could withstand the pressure Parker had been putting on him, he'd be unlikely to crack under a less intimidating interrogation.

No one would have guessed that the smartly dressed men who turned up to see Connie that morning were policemen. They listened to her account of the problems Bailey's had been experiencing then turned their attention to Penny, who told them about the blackmail ring. Naturally, she didn't mention Bill Brand, still hoping his involvement could be kept secret. Whilst the threat to International Rescue seemed to have receded – she was sure that if the blackmailers had found out about that Bill would have heard about it by now - she wasn't prepared to take any chances.

The men were somewhat surprised when Penny informed them that she had one of the culprits under guard in Connie's apartment, but they were happy to take Bridges into custody, one of them preparing to escort him back to the capital whilst the others headed into town to take on the chief of police. Alan had been in touch with Dion Lombardi, telling him that his 'friend' had uncovered evidence against the corrupt policeman and the racing driver had agreed to testify against him. The men were confident they could break him down and hoped he'd be persuaded to give up the mystery blackmailer. Penny wished she could sit in on the interview, but she still had work to do at Bailey's. Whilst the new investigators had thanked her for her efforts, they'd suggested that she leave the task of catching Hall and his accomplice to the professionals. They were irritated but not surprised when she refused to make any promises.

John arrived at Bailey's a short time later, grateful to have escaped from Tracy Island. Even though he'd only been home a couple of days, Alan's moping and self-reproach had become more than a little wearing and the tension between his brother and Tin-Tin had left John on edge. Plus, he wanted to spend some time with the rest of his brothers. Being stuck out in space whilst everyone else was confined to the island was one thing, but knowing that Scott and Virgil were freely enjoying the delights of a place like Bailey's was something else and he'd been just a little envious. He was glad to have the chance to spend a bit of time there himself.

Connie was delighted to see him.

"John, I'm so grateful for your help. Penny tells me that if anyone can trace these blackmail demands it's you."

"Well, I hope I can find something useful. It might take a while though. I'll need access to all the hotel computers."

"You do whatever you need to. Richard Bridges' office is free now of course, but I understand from Penny that you want to check out Jason Kerr, too."

John nodded. "He's a definite possibility. Is he around? I don't really want him seeing what I'm up to."

"Penny came up with a plan to get him out of the way for a while. He's going into town in an hour or so to talk to the police about the poisoning. He thinks it's just a friendly chat with the local police of course, so he's in for a bit of a shock. I'll keep him out of the way until it's time for him to go.

"I thought you could work on the office computers first, and then when he's left the hotel you can go to his room." She sighed. "I'll be so glad when this is over. Even if it turns out half my staff are involved I just want to be free of it while there's still a chance of saving Bailey's."

"I'll do my best," John promised, following her along the corridor to Bridges' office, agreeing with Connie that it would be best to do that one first, just to give her time to get Kerr safely away from his own office. It didn't take John long to gain access to the manager's files. But there was nothing incriminating amongst them. He wasn't really surprised – Bridges had told Penny that he wasn't one of the instigators so it was unlikely he'd have had any contact with the victims or had any part in handling the money.

John went back to Connie to let her know he was ready to move on to Kerr's office. Accepting her offer of coffee he set to work again. When Connie's secretary brought him his drink his search was well underway, but once again he found nothing. Again, he wasn't too disappointed - it was highly unlikely that Kerr would have risked using his office computer for his criminal activities. He just hoped he'd find what he needed in the security chief's room.

* * *

None of the Tracys had had the chance to meet up with John that morning. Scott was on duty at the pool whilst Virgil was working on some songs with Amy and Miguel. Gordon had spent some time guarding Bridges to give Parker a break, though he'd managed to find time for a workout in the pool as well. Jeff was predictably busy with Tracy Industries' business in his room and was unlikely to surface for a while. They'd planned to get together later when they hoped they'd have some more leads to follow. When Scott finished his duties at the pool he headed up to the hotel. Having spoken to Penny earlier he knew that his brother would be checking out Kerr's room after lunch and he'd agreed to go along with him, just in case Kerr came back or someone spotted a stranger wandering around and wondered what John was up to.

As usual, he met up with Virgil for lunch. It felt strange to have so many of his family around but not to be able to acknowledge them. Still, at least he didn't have to deny his relationship to Virgil, even if they were working under assumed names.

"Do you think John's found anything yet?" he asked his brother.

"I guess someone would have told us if he had," Virgil commented. "Seen Dad or Gordon this morning?"

"Gordon was showing off down at the pool earlier," Scott sighed. "He's got quite a fan club now."

"Took the attention away from you, did he?" Virgil laughed. "Never mind, if John finds a link to Kerr he could be gone by tomorrow. You can impress the girls again then."

"I did think about going back home with them," Scott admitted. "Are you going to stay on even if we catch the guy?"

Virgil looked surprised he was even asking. "Sure. The band doesn't get a permanent replacement for Rob until next week. I can't let them down. Anyway, Dad said two weeks R&R, remember? And after what happened the other day I'm surprised he hasn't made it three."

Scott smiled. "True. You know, I think I will stay on. After all, up till now we've been working. I'm still waiting to start my vacation." As his watch started beeping he got up. "That's my cue to go and look after John. See you later."

He met up with John in Connie's office where he'd been given lunch.

"Good to see you," he smiled. "Ready?"

"Whenever you are," John said. "We should have a good couple of hours. Connie's told him to report to her as soon as he gets back – she'll let us know when it's time to get out."

"Come on, then," Scott said, leading the way to Kerr's room in the staff quarters. John let them in with the key Connie had given him.

Kerr's room was untidy, but all John cared about was the fact that his laptop sat on top of his bedside table. He immediately set about his work. Scott, having made a thorough search of the room with no success, finally sat down on Kerr's bed and watched his brother quietly.

"Anything?" he eventually asked.

"Nothing yet," John told him without even looking up.

After about twenty minutes of inactivity. Scott started to feel quite sleepy, lulled into a state of relaxation by the tapping of the computer keys. He couldn't help yawning, still a little tired after being poisoned. He was suddenly jerked back to reality by the sound of John slamming the lid of the laptop down in frustration.

"Nothing! If Kerr is involved he didn't use his own computer."

Scott frowned. "You're sure?"

The cutting look John gave him was answer enough and Scott knew that if there had been anything to find John would have done so.

"Never mind. Guess we're just going to have to find Hall. Maybe we'll have to send Virg out to lure him into a trap."

John shot him a surprised look. "You'd do that?"

It was Scott's turn to glare. "Of course not. At least, not until there's no other option. Come on, let's get going. We'd better check out the other British guys."

He moved to the door and listened for a moment before opening it cautiously, just in case anyone should be passing. It was unlikely – at that time of day most of the people quartered in that particular block would be safely at work and the corridor should have been empty. It was a complete shock therefore to find the bulky figure of Jason Kerr standing there. A look somewhere between fear and fury crossed his face as he drew out a gun. Before Scott could react, Kerr shoved him back inside the room. Stumbling backwards, nearly knocking John over, it took him a moment to regain his balance. But by then Kerr had crossed the room and grabbed hold of John, pressing the gun to his head.

Despite his discomfort John laughed.

"We'd just given up on you. Talk about bad timing."

Kerr shook his head. "You're not supposed to be here. Why the hell didn't she get you out of the way?" Noticing the brothers' confused looks he sighed. "Never mind. Bad timing is right. I know there's nothing to find on the laptop. But right about now the police from the capital will be talking to my pet police chief and I'm guessing once Guy realises he's been caught out he's going to give me up just to make it easier on himself."

"You were the link with the local police, then?" Scott asked, playing for time and frantically trying to work out what to do. He couldn't risk attacking the man, not when he had a gun against his brother's head.

"Yeah. Just as well Louise called to let me know what was happening."

John looked at Scott in confusion. "Louise?"

"Connie's secretary," his brother told him. His heart sank – and not just because of the trouble they were in. Louise Bradley was the wife of the chief lifeguard. If she was involved with Kerr, Dave would be devastated. Still, there wasn't time to worry about that now.

Kerr went on,

"It wasn't hard for her to guess what was going on when Connie asked her to find a pass key to the staff quarters just after she found you in my office. She kept her ear to the door when Connie and your friend were talking to the police too."

He smiled across at Scott. "Just as well Connie's tied up with your brother and couldn't take the call from the police to say I hadn't arrived, isn't it? I think Louise might have just forgotten to pass the message on." He glared at them. "It's a pity she didn't do what I asked and make sure you were out of the way before I came back here. You and the other one have ruined everything. I was onto a good thing here before you turned up."

"So now what?" John asked.

Kerr laughed. "I think it's time I quit my job. You two had better come with me – I'll let you go when we get to the port. Here, you can drive." With his free hand he reached into his pocket, pulling out a set of car keys which he handed to John.

"You want _me _to drive?" John asked, glancing over at Scott who was looking equally horrified. John was notorious for his appalling driving and Kerr might well find himself regretting his choice of driver. Scott didn't like being driven by his brother at the best of times and the prospect of being in a car with him when he was under this kind of pressure was pretty terrifying.

"Let me do it," Scott pleaded, but Kerr just laughed.

"_You_ can pack my things." He kept a tight hold of John whilst directing Scott with the packing, watching his every move. Neither brother dared to risk trying to send out a signal on his watch.

Finally Kerr was ready to go. Both Scott and John made one last effort to get him to change his mind over his choice of driver, but Kerr remained adamant, convinced they were trying to put something over on him.

"Get moving," he said, ushering them out of the side door and into his car which he'd parked ready for a quick getaway. Pushing John into the driver's seat he turned the gun on Scott, holding the back door open so he could get in first. With Kerr's attention diverted for a moment as he settled himself next to Scott, pressing the gun against his side, John was finally able to activate his watch, sending out an emergency signal. He just hoped one of the others was near enough to get there in time.

Scott held his breath as John turned the key in the ignition. Kerr had obviously used some of his blackmail money to buy the classic car and he wondered whether his brother would be able to handle it. Not only was it ridiculously powerful, but it wasn't an automatic and John was utterly hopeless in anything which required him to actually change gears. First things first though - Scott just hoped his brother didn't stall the car. Kerr was likely to see such an event as a deliberate attempt to prevent his escape and he didn't want to think of the likely consequences. But fortunately for the brothers, John managed to get the engine going and, with an agonising crunch of gears, set off down the road.

"Get a move on!" Kerr demanded, jabbing his gun into Scott's ribs to show his frustration.

"I'm doing my best," John muttered, putting his foot down and flinching as everyone was flung forward. As he turned towards the gates of the hotel he was relieved to see his father come running out of the entrance. He only had time to mouth, "Sorry, gun," as he drove erratically away.

Within a couple of minutes Jeff was joined by Virgil, Gordon, Penny and Parker, who had all been alerted by John's signal.

"What's going on?" Gordon asked and Jeff quickly explained what he'd just witnessed.

"_John_ was driving?" Gordon asked and Jeff nodded grimly, much to Penny's mystification.

"Which way did they go?" Virgil asked as Parker headed off to get the car he'd hired.

"They turned left," Jeff told him.

"That's the way to the port," Penny said. "He's got a boat down there."

Parker brought the car around and Virgil and Gordon jumped in. With a squeal of tyres the car was gone even before Jeff could warn his boys to be careful.

"I 'ope they ain't got too far ahead of us," Parker muttered.

To his surprise Gordon laughed.

"If anyone else was driving they would have. But this is John we're talking about."

As Parker swung the car out of the hotel gate and onto the road he looked at the two brothers in bewilderment.

"John's a terrible driver," Virgil explained.

"He never gets any practice," Gordon continued. "He's either on Five or on Tracy Island. When he does go to the mainland he gets a taxi so he can carry on reading whatever book he's got on the go. Kerr's going to regret giving him the keys to his car. He'll probably stop and make Scott change places."

"If he doesn't decide to shoot them and drive himself," Virgil said suddenly, changing the mood in the car considerably.

"Can't you go any faster, Parker?" Gordon asked.

"This ain't the Rolls," the man replied. In fairness, he was taking the bends at a reckless speed.

Everyone jumped as their watches beeped, but it was just a frantic Jeff checking in.

"Any sign of them?"

"Not yet, Dad," Virgil told him. "We'll let you know as soon as there's any news."

Cutting off the call he sat back, staring anxiously at the winding road ahead, wondering just why they hadn't yet caught up with Kerr and his brothers. He wouldn't have expected John to have covered so much distance, especially driving an unfamiliar car under these kinds of circumstances.

Just then Parker let out a cry. "There they are!"

Sure enough they could see Kerr's car ahead. It was veering unsteadily across both lanes of the road and going far too fast. Parker put his foot down. "So what do we do when we catch 'em?" he asked.

Gordon and Virgil exchanged glances. They'd only been concerned about catching up with the car. Now that they had they were no better off. Kerr had a gun and he had their brothers.

"Ease off, Parker," Virgil said suddenly. "If he sees us and panics he might shoot."

Parker reluctantly did as Virgil asked. "Mister John is going a bit fast," he commented, watching as the car ahead only just negotiated a particularly sharp bend.

"More than a bit," Gordon muttered, wondering just what was going on in the car.

* * *

Jason Kerr wasn't happy. He'd soon realised that his hostage was a terrible driver. He'd gone from thinking he was in control, thanks to the advantage his gun gave him, to just wishing it was all over and that he could get out. He knew from the expression on Scott's face and from the way his muscles were tensing that this wasn't just an act designed to force him to surrender.

"Stop!" he demanded, waving the gun frantically as they headed towards another sharp bend and what looked like certain death from the long drop at the edge.

John just laughed. He'd quickly realised that the only chance he had was to abandon all caution and just put his foot down. Kerr wasn't stupid enough to shoot him when he was in control of a speeding car on a dangerous road. He used the words 'in control' loosely, of course. He was well aware that he'd been extremely lucky so far, but every time he approached a bend he wondered if he'd be able to hold the car on the road. He wished his brothers would hurry up and get there. When he saw a car gaining on them he knew it was them and he wondered what he should do next.

"Stop the car!" Kerr yelled once more, as John deliberately swerved to the other side of the road, then had to snatch at the wheel to stop himself smashing into a barrier.

"I'll shoot him!" Kerr waved the gun in Scott's face. Scott didn't say anything. Between the gun in his face and the terrifying view of the road, he'd actually closed his eyes. He just hoped John knew what he was doing.

"Now that's just making me more nervous," John said, laughing manically as he wrenched the wheel to the left. The car skidded around a bend, its tyres screeching. Looking in his mirror he saw the car behind him was no longer gaining ground, simply keeping pace with him. He guessed Parker was driving. It was frustrating that help was so close, yet so impossible to access whilst he remained in the moving vehicle.

"I mean it! I'll shoot him! I'll shoot you too!" Kerr yelled, a note of hysteria creeping into his voice. John had a certain sympathy. That last manoeuvre had been a little too close to the edge for comfort. Yet he felt a sense of exhilaration. Just let his brothers try teasing him for his bad driving now, he thought. He doubted they could have done any better.

"You know what?" John asked. "You're not putting up a very good argument here. I mean, what are you planning on doing with us when we get to the port?"

Kerr stared at him. "I'm going to let you go."

"Both of us?" John asked and smiled when Kerr hesitated. "I've been here before. Trust me, we know all about double-crossing hostage-takers, right Scott?"

Scott mumbled something incoherent. He wished John would just shut up and concentrate on driving.

"Okay, so you take one of us with you. Then you push him out of the boat as soon as you're well away from port, right?" John said. He ignored Kerr's frantic denials. "So, my choice is... slow down and let you kill me later or speed up..." he inched his foot further down on the accelerator as he did so, "... and kill all of us. Either way it's the same for me, but at least this way I get the satisfaction of taking you with me."

"I'll let you go," Kerr said, knowing he was beaten. "I give up, okay? Just slow down. This next bend's the worst one on the road. _Slow down!_ "

His genuine panic worried John. But he didn't have much choice at this stage. He kept his foot pressed down.

"Give the gun to Scott!"

Kerr hesitated even as Scott, eyes still closed, held out his hand.

"Just do it!" John could see that he was running out of road. Unless he slowed down in a few seconds he'd have no chance.

"_Okay, okay!"_ Kerr did as he asked. John slammed on the brakes, realising he'd left it too late to make the turn. Closing his eyes, yelling an apology to his brother, he waited for the end. Behind him Kerr was screaming. Tyres were squealing. Only Scott was silent. He didn't want his last words to be an expletive-filled tirade against his brother. He kept his thoughts to himself, knowing that John would guess exactly what he was thinking. The car slewed sideways and John wrestled with the wheel, unable to keep it straight, gripping it so tightly that his fingers were white. Time seemed to stand still. Then they were slowing down... and finally they came to a stop.

John opened his eyes, just a fraction, hardly able to believe they'd made it. Suddenly chaos broke out in the back seat as Scott, finally capable of action, threw himself onto Kerr and began to pound him. Then the door was yanked open and Gordon and Parker between them dragged the pair out, Gordon holding Scott back from the battered security chief.

Virgil, calm and smiling as usual, appeared at the passenger door.

"Hey Johnny."

"Hi Virg." John couldn't quite keep the quaver out of his voice. He reached for the door handle with hands that shook a little.

"I wouldn't go out that way," Virgil said, holding out a hand and helping John as he obediently shuffled across and out of the other door. As soon as he'd got out, leaning on his brother for support – his legs were annoyingly wobbly – he realised why Virgil had wanted him to get out the passenger side. The wheel on the driver's side was barely on the road. If he'd opened the door his side he'd have stepped out onto a hundred foot drop.

"Close," was all he could say.

Virgil nodded. "Too close. Come on, let's get out of here."

They looked over to the others. Scott had finally given up trying to get to Kerr, pushing Gordon away before striding across to John. At the sight of the expression on his eldest brother's face John dived behind Virgil for protection as Scott let rip with everything he'd been thinking in the car.

"Take 'im back to the 'otel," Parker told them, an amused smile playing about his face. He indicated Kerr's car. "I'll get a tow-truck to move this one." "

"Thanks, Parker," Gordon said, pulling open the back door of Parker's car with one hand whilst pushing Kerr inside with the other. He got in next to him whilst Scott went round and sat the other side.

Virgil looked at John. "Do you want to drive?"

"No!"

John couldn't help but feel hurt by the expressions of relief which greeted his reply!


	15. Chapter 15

_So, a full set of Tracy brothers have been teased and/or tormented! Thanks for reviewing. Hope you like this one too. Bee_

Chapter Fifteen

Penny, Scott and Virgil interviewed Jason Kerr in Connie's sitting room. When Scott had broken the news that her secretary wasn't to be trusted, Connie had taken a moment to come to terms with yet another betrayal before returning to her office to find some task to keep the woman occupied. Sending her off to check on the condition of those members of staff who'd been poisoned, she returned a short while later to announce that the coast was clear.

"I'll go and check her computer," John said.

"Don't bother," Kerr told him, "She doesn't know anything."

Deciding not to believe him Scott nodded to his brother to continue. "Go with him, Gordon. When she gets back, keep her there."

"Okay, Scott."

When the brothers had left, Penny began her interrogation of Jason Kerr. Pointing out that they could now add kidnapping to his list of crimes, she suggested he make a full confession. She wasn't surprised when he remained silent, so, deciding that a little embellishment of the truth wouldn't go amiss, she played him the tape of his conversation with Bridges.

"Mr Bridges has told us of your involvement," she lied. "There really is no way out of this."

Kerr looked at her in some confusion.

"Who _are_ you? Why aren't I talking to the police?"

"A friend of ours is one of your blackmail victims," Penny told him. "When you target such high-profile people you have to expect some unorthodox responses."

Kerr smiled grimly. "Well I suppose Vince is proof of that. Was that you?"

"Certainly not!" Penny sounded quite offended. "I can assure you that our techniques are far less crude." Then she thought about some of Parker's past methods of persuasion and qualified, "Well, unless we're completely out of alternatives."

Kerr risked a sideways glance at Scott, rubbing his aching jaw. Scott stared back impassively.

"Well, Mr Kerr?" Penny asked.

The man sat silently for a minute, drumming his fingers on the arms of the chair.

"You said you thought the chief of police would give you up," Scott reminded him. "You could get in first."

Kerr let out a deep breath before nodding resignedly. "Okay. I suppose I've got nothing to lose. It was all Rob's idea..."

When he'd finished explaining how he'd been drawn into the musician's scheme he sat back with a sigh.

"Now you're going to ask me where Rob's hiding, am I right?"

"That was one of our questions," Virgil agreed. Kerr turned to look at him.

"Rob really had it in for you, you know. He wasn't too impressed when you got together with Amy. Mind you, I was surprised when he actually tried to kill you. He won't be bothering you anymore though – he's gone."

"Gone? Where?"

"I don't know. I called him as soon as Louise told me what was going on. He agreed it was time to get out of here. I suggested we go together but he didn't want to hang around. He has his own boat anyway, he didn't need to wait for me."

Penny was already calling Parker, instructing him to get himself over to the port to track down the pianist.

"I guess you were the one who warned him Vince Ferdinand's attackers were onto him," Virgil said.

"One of the advantages of being head of security is having access to all the hotel cameras. I saw what happened to Vince and I managed to get a call through to Rob when I saw the two men heading his way."

"What about Louise Bradley?" Scott asked as Connie rolled her eyes.

"What is it about this place?" she asked bitterly. "Does everyone lose all self-control when they arrive here?"

"Looks that way," Kerr smiled. "She didn't know anything about the blackmail though. Or about Bridges' grudge against you. I was just having a bit of fun." He looked at Penny and the Tracy brothers and frowned. "I got some useful bits of information out of her but she couldn't tell me anything about you lot."

Connie looked across at Penny. "I didn't tell her what was going on. I knew you wanted your real business here kept secret."

"So how did she know about John?" Virgil asked.

"I asked her to take him a coffee when he was in Jason's office. I told her he was there to look into upgrading the security system but she must have put two and two together."

"You asked her for a pass key to the staff quarters too, didn't you?" Scott asked.

"I'm so sorry, Scott. You and John could have been killed." Connie was genuinely distressed.

"Not to worry," Scott told her. "We're fine. In fact, you probably did us a favour. We'd just ruled Kerr here out. If he hadn't given himself away when he came back and took us hostage we'd have lost him."

"Why didn't Louise tell me you were still there?" Kerr asked. "She was supposed to warn me if you were still in my room."

Connie smiled. "I found her hanging round in the lobby when I went to rehearse with Virgil. Her lunch break had finished so I took her back to the office and made sure she had plenty to do. I thought she didn't look too happy."

"Poor Dave," Scott commented. "I guess he has to know."

"I think it would only be fair to tell him," Penny agreed.

Scott checked his watch and stood up. "He'll be finishing his shift soon. Guess I should get it over with."

"Good luck," Virgil told him, not envying his brother. He turned to Penny.

"Now what?"

"Perhaps you and Gordon could take Mr Kerr down to the police station. I'll let our associates know you're on your way. "

"Sure." Virgil rose to his feet. He looked across at Connie who was lost in thought. "Are you up to singing tonight?"

She smiled. "I'm looking forward to it. It's the one thing I seem to have some control over at the moment."

"I think you're back in control of everything," Penny told her. "Mr Bridges is out of the way so there won't be any more accidents and we've identified all the blackmailers. I'd like to know where Mr Hall has gone, though."

Right on cue Parker called in. He confirmed Jason Kerr's assertion that Rob Hall had made his escape from the island, having found witnesses who'd seen his boat slipping her moorings and disappearing over the horizon just before lunchtime.

"So he could be anywhere," Penny mused. "Come back here and pack up, Parker. We need to track him down and find those blackmail tapes."

Kerr grinned.

"What's so funny?" Virgil asked him, pulling him to his feet as Connie went to find Gordon.

"Nothing. Just glad one of us got away."

Penny looked at him thoughtfully. "Are you sure there's nothing more you want to tell us?"

"Quite sure," he responded. "I think I've said enough."

Gordon returned with the news that there was nothing incriminating on Louise Bradley's computer.

"Come on then," Virgil said, pushing Kerr out of the door. "Penny, will you be here when we get back?"

"I don't think so. I'd like to get on with the search for Mr Hall before the trail goes cold. I'll need to get in touch with Margaret too. I promised her I'd keep her informed of our progress and I'd like to find out how Vince Ferdinand is getting along."

Virgil couldn't help laughing. "You know, maybe we shouldn't give him up to the police – he's getting enough punishment where he is."

"Really, Virgil, Margaret's a lovely woman. I'm sure she's only teasing the boy. No, it's her grandson I'm concerned about. He's got a short temper and it worries me that he might lose control again. Now that we have Mr Kerr and Mr Bridges in custody I believe we need to rescue Mr Ferdinand. A prison cell would seem his safest option right now."

"Maybe you're right. Take care, Penny."

"You too, Virgil."

* * *

It wasn't until later that afternoon that the Tracys had the chance to meet up. Penny had said her goodbyes and left in pursuit of Rob Hall. Jeff was delighted at the success of their mission, though, like the others, he'd have been happier if the missing musician had been captured too. With the threat to International Rescue's security still hanging over them he couldn't truly relax. But he knew that if anyone could track the missing man down it would be Penny. Alan had been directed to give her all the help he could.

Thinking of his youngest son back on Tracy Island, Jeff felt more than a little uneasy, wondering if they should all head for home. He was sure there would be a call-out at any moment and he'd prefer it to happen when they actually had someone there to carry out a rescue.

"Boys," he said, looking around at his four eldest sons. "Get your things together, it's time to go home."

"But Dad, I can't leave now. What will the band do?" Virgil looked horror-struck. The thought of all that practising for nothing was unbearable. Then there was Amy. He'd been looking forward to his last few days with her. "I can't leave Connie without a pianist. I'd really like to stay for the rest of the week."

Jeff considered this for a moment. He supposed it wouldn't be fair to Connie to take away her pianist at such short notice. And he had insisted on two full weeks R&R when he'd grounded his sons. Not that they'd been any safer at Bailey's...

"Fair enough, Virgil, I suppose you're right. Scott?" Jeff fully expected his eldest son to be itching to get back into action.

"Actually, Dad, Dave didn't take the news about Louise too well. Connie's given him a couple of days off so they're short-staffed at the pool..."

"He's grounded for the rest of the week anyway," Virgil pointed out.

Jeff sighed. "True. Okay, boys, you get the full two weeks. Just don't get yourselves into any more trouble."

"What about me?" Gordon asked hopefully. He'd only just arrived at Bailey's and he wasn't ready to leave just yet.

"You're still on duty! Start packing."

"Actually, Dad, you might want to stay another night," Virgil said. "Connie's going to sing tonight."

"You're playing for her?" Virgil nodded and Jeff was genuinely taken with the idea. "Well I suppose one more night wouldn't hurt. Alan can come and get us if we're needed. And it would be nice to celebrate a successful mission."

"Great!" Gordon said. "I'm off to the pool." And he was gone before his father could change his mind.

"How about you, John? Do you want to go home?" Jeff asked, hoping that one son would want to get back to work.

"Actually, Dad, I'm enjoying the change of scene – if I'm not up in Five, I'm on the Island. I'm happy to stay a bit longer."

Jeff watched as his three sons headed out of the door. Then he opened his briefcase to get on with some company business. He really didn't do vacations!

* * *

That night there was quite a party atmosphere. Even Jeff relaxed enough to enjoy a few drinks, though it was a bittersweet experience for him. Watching Connie he was soon lost in sorrowful memories of Lucy and the time the two of them had seen her perform. But he was also filled with pride to see Virgil accompanying his favourite singer. Checking with John that the performance was being recorded, he knew he'd treasure this memory forever. Then he thought about how thrilled Lucy would have been and at that moment he missed her more than ever.

Jeff was shaken from his thoughts when Gordon swore. Looking across at his son in some surprise he turned to follow his gaze and saw Cyrus heading their way. The man saw him looking and waved cheerfully.

"Dad," Gordon hissed. "Can't we tell everyone who Scott and Virg really are now?"

"No," Jeff said. "Why complicate things?"

There was no time for Gordon to explain as Cyrus reached their table, accepting Jeff's invitation for him to join them. Scott looked over at Gordon in amusement, deliberately leaning over to his brother and inviting him to admire Virgil's performance. Cyrus glanced over at the pianist then back to Gordon and winked. Looking from one to the other in bewilderment, Jeff decided not to ask his son why he'd gone so red. When it came to Gordon, he thought, sometimes it was best not to know.

Cyrus was at the bar when Connie took a short break and Virgil got up and headed over to his family. Gordon had been deep in conversation with John and didn't notice until it was too late. Virgil slid into Cyrus's seat and leaned across to his brother, putting a hand on his shoulder as he asked,

"What do you think?"

The look of horror with which Gordon greeted him instantly had him worried. For once he hadn't panicked too much before his performance, familiar now with the set-up at Bailey's. He'd been pretty happy with his playing and Connie had sung flawlessly, so he was confused by Gordon's response.

"Was it that bad?"

"Of course not," John reassured him, equally puzzled by his younger brother's reaction. "You were fantastic. Gords, what's wrong?"

Gordon ignored him. "Virg, go away!"

"Why? What have I...? " Virgil trailed off as Cyrus suddenly appeared in front of him.

"Hey, am I interrupting something, boys?"

"_No!"_ Gordon was on his feet. "Virgil was just leaving."

"Leaving?" Jeff asked, overhearing this part of the conversation. "Connie said fifteen minutes. He doesn't have to go yet."

Cyrus looked at Jeff in surprise. "You know this guy?"

Jeff smiled, careful not to give away Virgil's true identity. "Oh yes, he's a good friend of Gordon's."

By now Virgil had worked out what was going through Cyrus's mind and he fidgeted uncomfortably, aware of Scott's strangled attempt at smothering a laugh.

"Actually, I'd better go," he said, rising to his feet and making a dash for the safety of the piano.

Cyrus sat back down in his chair and nudged Gordon. "Well, I didn't think you'd be introducing your friend to your father. Guess Jeff must be more enlightened than I gave him credit for. Hey, Jeff-"

"_Shut up!"_ Gordon hissed.

Cyrus smiled. "Oh, I get it. He thinks he really _is_ just a friend. Don't worry, your secret's safe with me."

"What secret?" Jeff asked, once more taking an interest in the conversation.

"Nothing," Gordon muttered. "Just... discussing what I could get you for your birthday."

"But that's not for another eight months," Jeff said in surprise.

It was John who saved Gordon. "Well, that must be Amy," he commented as a very beautiful girl in a very short dress made her way to the piano and slipped her arms around Virgil.

"Yeah," Gordon said, gazing at his brother enviously.

Cyrus followed his gaze, glancing back at Gordon and completely misinterpreting his expression.

"Guess your friend really does like redheads, huh? Never mind, kid."

Blushing furiously, Gordon leapt up and headed for the bar where he was joined by his father.

"Get another one for Cyrus, will you?"

"Don't you think he's had enough?" Gordon grumbled. Still, maybe he'd pass out or give up and go to bed. He just hoped the man would be gone by the time Virgil and Connie were finished. Returning to his seat he passed Cyrus his drink.

"Thanks, Gordon." The man turned to Jeff. "You've got a good boy there, Jeff."

"Yes, I have." For once Gordon failed to feel any pride as his father outlined his swimming achievements. He glanced round the bar desperately, hoping to catch the eye of any available woman. Seeing a few of the girls who'd admired his performance in the pool that day he headed in their direction, all too aware of Cyrus's eyes on him. It seemed that every time he glanced across the man was watching him in amusement and Gordon grew more and more frustrated.

When Connie's performance was over she and Virgil joined the group at their table. Amy, Miguel and some of the other band members arrived too and soon the party began in earnest. Much to Gordon's annoyance Cyrus didn't seem inclined to make any move and he wondered if he could just sneak away with one of the girls. Suddenly there was a tap on his shoulder.

"Gordon, come on over and congratulate your brother."

"In a minute, Dad. I'm a bit busy at the moment."

Bring your friends with you. Honestly, anyone would think you didn't want to be seen with us."

Looking over to where Virgil sat with his arm around Amy, oblivious to anyone else's presence, Gordon decided he was probably safe. Leading a couple of the girls over, he sat down, pulling one of them onto his lap as she giggled. Cyrus winked at him again.

"Pretty convincing performance. Guess your dad doesn't know?"

Gordon gritted his teeth. "Look, Cyrus, there's nothing for him to know, okay?"

"Hey, you don't have to be ashamed. But it's a pity to be leading these ladies on. Why don't you let me take them off your hands?"

"What does he mean, 'leading us on'?" one of the girls asked.

"Nothing," Gordon said desperately. "Look, let's take the party back to my room, shall we?"

He was furious when Cyrus, who'd been eyeing up one of the girls for the past several minutes, grabbed her as she went to walk past him.

"Hey, don't waste your time with Tracy here. You're not his type."

"Cyrus..."

"Oh, come on Gordon. Don't be shy. Your father's not looking. Go and see your boyfriend." Cyrus waved at Virgil who, guessing exactly what was going on, held onto Amy that bit tighter.

The girls looked at Gordon in surprise, disentangling themselves from him.

"Boyfriend?"

Gordon could take no more. It was just a pity that his yell of frustration coincided with a break in the music and the whole bar heard him as he informed Cyrus,

"He's not my boyfriend, he's my brother!"

There was silence for a moment. Then Scott and John burst out laughing. Jeff was lost for words. He didn't know whether to be more stunned by the revelation of their relationship or by Cyrus's misjudgement of Gordon!

"Brother?" Cyrus repeated, looking from Gordon to Virgil and back again.

"Yes, he's my brother. Not my... He's just my brother!"

Cyrus looked at Jeff for confirmation. "Your son works in a hotel?"

With a glare at Gordon Jeff had to think quickly,

"Well, Virgil was getting a little tired of life in the office. He wanted to try out a new lifestyle. I thought he'd better have his way, help him realise he's better off sticking with the family business..."

Virgil managed a smile at the various members of staff who were staring at him in surprise.

"Well, Connie needed a pianist..."

Amy was looking at him in disbelief.

"Are you really Jeff Tracy's son?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Oh." She was quiet for a moment.

"Are you mad at me?" Virgil asked.

She looked at him sadly. "Not really. It's just that I was still hoping I'd be able to persuade you to stay. I guess that's not going to happen now, is it?"

"Amy, I really can't stay. Not that I don't want to. I just... I've got a job to go back to."

She managed a smile. "Well, at least no one can say I only wanted you for your money. And we've still got a few days..."

Jeff watched his middle son as he disappeared with Amy.

"What's wrong?" Scott asked.

"He's not falling for her, is he?"

"Amy? No, he likes her but I don't think there's any more to it than that."

"Good. I can just imagine my mother's face if he brought her home."

"Why? What's wrong with her?"

"Well, that dress, for a start. Maybe now Virgil's been outed as a Tracy he can buy her something with a little more... fabric."

Scott had to laugh. "At least he wasn't outed as anything else. Poor Gordon."

Jeff frowned. "So much for secrecy. Just as well this is all over. I'll be glad to get back home for some peace and quiet." He looked at his watch. "I'm off to bed. You boys enjoy yourselves. Just remember that Cyrus has absolutely no discretion. Be careful."

"Night Dad."

Scott watched him go. Lost in thought for a moment he was surprised when Gordon came over.

"Drink?"

"Thanks." He took the beer gratefully.

"Marie was wondering if you were coming to join us," he said, waving across at the waitress who'd been trying to get Scott's attention for the past few days. She waved back. Scott smiled but didn't move.

"Come on, Scott. Stop moping over Penny and have some fun."

"What? I'm not moping over Penny!"

"Could have fooled me. All these women and you just want to talk to Dad. That's not the Scott Tracy I know."

Scott sighed. "Just because I want a little intelligent conversation once in a while... And for your information I do not miss Penny. Nothing happened between us and nothing ever will. Got it?" With that he strode over to the table, grabbed Marie and pulled her into a corner.

Gordon wondered if he'd touched a nerve.


	16. Chapter 16

_Thanks for all the feedback on the last chapter. Whirlgirl, a big thank you for your review, especially the bit about Gordon - I never felt I'd got him right in the first two stories, so your comment really means a lot. Nearly at the end of the story now, just a few loose ends to tie up..._

Chapter Sixteen

Virgil was glad his father hadn't insisted he accompany him back to Tracy Island. He'd enjoyed playing piano for Connie and he'd enjoyed the party afterwards, though he'd had absolutely no regrets about leaving early. He and Amy had slept late and it was only the need to say goodbye to his father and brothers which finally forced him to get up. Still half-asleep, he headed for the small kitchen at the end of the corridor to make some coffee.

Amy pulled on her robe and drew the curtains. The sunlight spilled into the room and she gazed out of the window, lost in thought for a moment. She was really going to miss Virgil when he left. She didn't even notice when the door opened. It was only when a hand brushed her hair back, making her jump, that she realised she was no longer alone. Even then she didn't realise the trouble she was in, instead leaning back against the man and murmuring Virgil's name. But when the hand suddenly clamped over her nose and mouth and she was dragged away from the window, she knew that this wasn't the man who'd just left her. Fighting against her captor she tried to scream, but he was too strong for her and though she tried to pull his hand away from her face, she didn't have the strength. Barely able to breathe, it wasn't long before she gave up her attempt to escape.

The hand was removed from her face and she was pushed to the floor. Gasping for breath, she looked up at her assailant. Maybe it was the shock of the attack, but it took her a moment to realise who it was. He'd dyed his hair back to its original brown and removed the coloured contacts he'd been wearing since arriving at Bailey's. With a different haircut and a fair amount of stubble covering his features, he was barely recognisable. Amy stared at him in confusion. The last she'd heard he'd left the island.

He looked down at her, his eyes cold and hard.

"Hi, Amy," he said. "Remember me?"

"Rob?"

"You do know me, then?" His tone was bitter and she shrank away from him as he looked at her in contempt. "You know, I thought you might have taken a few days to miss me before moving onto the next guy."

"What do you want?" All she could manage was a whisper and she stared desperately at the door, hoping Virgil would come back to save her, but dreading what Rob would do to him when he did reappear.

"Unfinished business. Your boyfriend and I have a few things to talk about."

He knelt beside her, grabbing her hair with one hand to stop her getting away whilst pulling a bag towards him with the other. Smiling coldly, he brought out a knife and she froze as placed it at her throat.

"Okay. Just do as you're told and I won't hurt you. Now then, arms behind your back."

"What about Virgil?" she whispered in terror, allowing him to pull her arms behind her back and bind them tightly.

Rob just laughed and proceeded to gag her. "I can't promise I won't hurt him. But it's okay, you don't have to watch. I'm going to take him somewhere nice and quiet where we won't be disturbed." He bound her ankles too and she knew she was helpless. She hated herself for not putting up more of a fight. Now there was no way to warn Virgil and he'd be back at any moment.

He pulled her upright and held her close as he watched the door. Sure enough, he only had to wait a couple more minutes before it opened and Virgil stepped into the room, his hands full of coffee and toast. The moment he set eyes on the pair who stood waiting for him he knew he was trapped. Amy stared at him with despairing, tear-filled eyes and though he'd never seen the man before Virgil immediately knew who it was. Amy whimpered something unintelligible and he put the cups and plates down before raising his hands and taking a step towards her.

"You okay?" he asked gently. He knew how it felt to be taken prisoner, to be terrified and helpless, and he wouldn't have wished it on anyone. Meeting Amy's eyes he tried to reassure her that everything was going to be alright, even though he didn't really believe it himself. She nodded, but as her eyes spilled over with tears he guessed she didn't think there would be a happy ending either. He turned his attention to the man he'd thought was long gone.

"Hello, Virgil," Hall said. "Have a seat." He indicated the bed. Obediently, Virgil sat down.

"What do you want?" he asked, wondering if he could risk alerting the others via his watch. Watching Hall press the knife against Amy's throat he decided against it. He didn't think the man would hurt her, given his apparent obsession with her, but he couldn't risk it.

"To talk. Just you and me."

"Okay," Virgil said. "What about Amy?"

"Well, that depends on you. Co-operate and she'll be okay. But if you try to play the hero she might just get hurt."

"I'll do whatever you say," Virgil told him, smiling encouragingly at Amy once more.

"Thought you might. Turn around and close your eyes."

Reluctantly, Virgil did as he was told, not just closing his eyes, but screwing them up tightly, his whole body tense as he waited for the blow he knew was coming.

Amy tried to cry out but Rob ignored her. Pushing her away so that she crashed to the floor, he picked up the bedside lamp, strode across to Virgil and brought it crashing down on his head. Virgil collapsed onto the bed and Amy began to scream, though all that came out was a muffled wail.

"Shut up!" Rob snapped. "Think yourself lucky I don't have time to worry about you right now."

He moved across to the large window, opening it and looking outside before returning to Virgil, pulling him upright and dragging him across the room.

"Shame we're on the ground floor," he laughed as he tipped him out of the window. Then he returned to Amy and lifted her onto the bed.

"I may be a while so make yourself comfortable. I'll be back when I've dealt with your boyfriend."

He left her to struggle uselessly with her bonds as he too exited through the window. A minute or so later Amy heard the sound of a golf cart starting up. As the sound of the engine faded away, she was left to wonder just what Rob was planning to do to Virgil – and why. She couldn't understand Rob's actions, though she knew she wasn't thinking too clearly just then. But surely this couldn't just be because he resented Virgil for taking both his girlfriend and his place in the band? There had to be more to it than that. She didn't know about the blackmailing - Connie was determined to keep that a secret if she possibly could, mindful of her hotel's reputation – but she knew something was very wrong at Bailey's and it seemed Rob was a big part of it. Desperately trying to free herself, she prayed someone would come to help, all the while knowing that the staff quarters were likely to be deserted until lunchtime. By then she thought, Virgil would have run out of time.

* * *

Gordon yawned as he closed up his suitcase. He still had ten minutes before he had to meet his father and John and he took the opportunity to grab a glass of water and another couple of painkillers. The hangover had been worth it though – he hadn't had so much fun in a long time. He thought he would definitely be coming back to Bailey's when his leave began, especially since Chloe would still have a few days left of her vacation. Any doubts she'd had about him thanks to Cyrus had certainly been laid to rest... He wondered how his other brothers had got on. Well, maybe not Virgil – there was nothing to wonder about there. He and Amy had left early and Gordon couldn't blame him. No wonder he wanted to stay a few more days.

All in all it had been a good night, Gordon thought. Scott had looked to be getting along just fine with Marie the waitress when Gordon had left, which just left John... He'd disappeared not long after Virgil without a word to anyone and Gordon would have assumed he'd given up on the party and gone back to his room to curl up with a good book if it hadn't been for his brother's quiet air of satisfaction when he'd turned up late to breakfast. Not that John was likely to satisfy his brother's curiosity though – he liked to keep his conquests secret. It didn't mean Gordon wouldn't plague the life out of him trying to find out, though. Gordon smiled, looking forward to the flight home when John would have no way of escaping him.

There was a knock at the door and he heard his father's voice calling out, asking him if he was ready. With a final glance round the room, Gordon picked up his case and opened the door.

Jeff shook his head at the sight of his dishevelled, hung-over son. He debated whether to make a comment then decided to let it go, not wanting to get into any discussion of the previous night's events. He didn't approve of the quick flings which characterised most of his sons' encounters with women these days, but he appreciated the restrictions International Rescue had placed on their chances for a normal life. He just preferred to be kept in ignorance. It was just a pity that Cyrus had been there to witness everything - he hated to think what juicy bits of gossip he'd be spreading about his sons. Still, they _were_ supposed to be enjoying the playboy lifestyle and he supposed it could have been worse - for Gordon at least!

In the lobby they met up with Scott and John. Connie came along to say a final goodbye and they chatted for several minutes as they waited for Virgil to join them. Eventually Jeff looked at his watch in exasperation. 11.45 – late even for Virgil.

"Where's that boy of mine?" he asked Scott. "I thought he'd want to say goodbye to us."

"He'll be here," Scott said. "This is early for him, Dad – he's really thrown himself into the lifestyle here. It's all late nights, piano and...er..." he trailed off but his father knew exactly what he meant. Jeff just grunted, wondering if Virgil would really be able to tear himself away from Bailey's and hoping he hadn't made a big mistake in giving him the chance to indulge the musical side of his nature.

"We need to make a move if we're going to catch that flight," John commented.

Gordon stood up. "I'll go and drag him out of bed," he offered with a grin.

Scott jumped up and pushed him back into his seat. "No chance! I'll do it!"

"Spoilsport!" Gordon pretended to sulk.

"Will _one_ of you go?" Jeff grumbled, looking at his watch again. "And hurry up! We have to leave in ten minutes."

"FAB," said Scott, hurrying outside to activate his watch.

"Virgil, where are you?" There was no response. "Virg, Dad's ready to go. He wants you in the lobby now. Put Amy down and get yourself moving." Still there was nothing. Sighing, Scott set off towards Amy's room at a brisk jog.

Banging on the door, Scott waited for a few moments before repeating the action and calling his brother's name. There was still no response and he assumed Virgil and Amy had already left. He was about to turn away when something made him hesitate. He wondered if he was imagining things. But then, listening carefully, his ear to the door, a cold feeling came over him when he realised he'd been right – inside the room someone was crying.

Taking a couple of steps back he slammed his shoulder into the door, wincing as he did so. But the door flew open and he was confronted with the sight of Amy lying on the bed, bound and gagged. There was no sign of Virgil and he tried to fight back the feeling of panic as he rushed to the girl, drawing his pocketknife to free her. He guessed straightaway who was responsible for all this.

"Where's Virgil?" he asked as soon as he'd removed the gag. He set to work on the ropes that bound her wrists, grimacing at the blisters and raw flesh where she'd been trying to work herself free.

Between gasping sobs Amy managed to explain what had happened. "Rob's got him. He looks different but I knew it was him. He knocked Virgil out. He took him away. I think I heard a golf cart – he could be anywhere on the grounds. Scott, Rob's going to hurt him."

"We'll find him," Scott was already on his feet. "Stay here."

Running outside he called the others, instructing his horrified father and brothers to start searching.

"Someone needs to find Connie. Tell her to have everyone on the lookout. If anyone's seen anything she needs to let us know. Then get someone over to look after Amy. John, can you track Virgil's watch?"

"I'm on it," John replied. "I'm on my way to Connie now."

"Dad, Gordon, they're somewhere out on the grounds. Amy said Rob took Virgil off in a golf cart so they could be anywhere. Spread out – as soon as John finds him we need to be ready to make a move."

Cutting the call, Scott looked around in frustration. The extensive grounds of Bailey's stretched out as far as he could see. Virgil could be anywhere.

* * *

"Feeling better?"

Virgil knew his captor wasn't the slightest bit concerned for his welfare, even without the mocking tone of his voice. He said nothing, waiting for his head to clear and his eyes to focus. He struggled against his bonds, trying to ignore the man who sat watching him in amusement.

"We need to talk, Virgil," Rob Hall continued.

Virgil squinted at him wondering how he'd managed to elude Penny and why he'd come back to Bailey's. He'd have asked him, but the gag Hall had tied around his mouth made it impossible. All he could do was lie there helplessly as the man continued,

"You know, under different circumstances you and I might have been friends. We seem to have a lot in common. Music, the same taste in women... Though since you seem to be one of the good guys maybe we wouldn't get along so well after all. You've ruined everything for me, you know." The threat in his voice was obvious as he rose to his feet, looming over Virgil who tried to push himself upright but found he was still too shaky to do so. Lying back on the floor he watched in apprehension as Hall knelt down beside him.

"You really are going to be sorry," he murmured, smiling menacingly.

Virgil knew that he needed help quickly. He slammed his wrist against the floor as hard as he could, shattering the glass cover of his watch and sending out a distress call to all IR operatives in the immediate vicinity. Now all he could do was wait.

* * *

Gordon had decided to get his own golf cart in order to head down to the far reaches of the hotel grounds. He was glad he'd done so when a shrill beep came from his watch, followed by John's frantic voice.

"I've got him! He just activated the emergency beacon on his watch."

Relieved that he was already halfway there, he followed John's directions, hoping Virgil could hang on until he got there.

It only took Gordon five minutes to reach Virgil's location but it seemed a lot longer. When a small, dilapidated bungalow came into view he guessed he'd reached his destination. Bringing the golf cart to a halt so as not to alert Hall to his presence, he covered the rest of the distance on foot. Another golf cart stood next to the building.

"Dad," Gordon whispered into his watch. "I've found them."

"Okay, don't do anything yet. We're on our way."

Hall had kept up a constant chatter, explaining just what he had planned for Amy once he'd dealt with Virgil.

"Do you know what really upsets me, though? " he asked, rummaging in his bag, his back to his captive. When Virgil didn't answer he continued anyway.

"It's not so much you finding out about the blackmail – I always knew that was a risk. But it's everything else. You've taken my place in the band. And taken my girl. Don't worry, though; I've decided you can have her - if she still wants you after I've finished with you, that is." He pulled something out of the bag as he spoke. Then he turned to face his captive and the hammer he casually swung as he walked back towards him made Virgil's blood freeze.

Gordon listened nervously at the door, hoping that nothing would happen before reinforcements arrived, but fully prepared to barge in at the first sign of trouble. He heard Hall berating Virgil for his interference and for taking his place with the band and with Amy. Then he froze in horror at his next comment.

"Sorry about this Virgil, but I'd feel so much happier if you weren't able to play the piano again. We'll call it payback for getting in my way. I'll just get this over with and then we can have a chat about your real reason for being here."

Risking a quick peek through the window Gordon knew he'd run out of time.

"Dad, Scott, I'm going in. Hurry!"

With that he kicked the door open and burst into the room.

Virgil felt sick with terror as he tried to scrabble backwards, away from the swinging hammer. But Hall had tied him securely and he could only tense his muscles, growing wide-eyed with panic as his captor stood over him. Clenching his hands into fists he tried to twist away, but it was hopeless. Hall raised the hammer and Virgil closed his eyes, waiting for the agony to begin.

There was a sudden crash and the hammer dropped harmlessly to the floor as Hall was propelled across the room by the force of Gordon's body slamming against him. Virgil could do nothing to help as the two struggled. It was a fairly even match which could have gone either way if it hadn't been for the arrival of Scott and Jeff who made short work of Hall. As they restrained him, Gordon got to his feet and made his way over to his brother. Virgil was still trying to get control over his rapid heartbeat and panicked breathing. As Gordon untied him he realised that he was shaking and he tried to hold himself still, not wanting to betray any weakness in front of his younger brother. Then his eyes fell upon the hammer again and he shuddered, pulling his hands against his body protectively. Gordon put his hands on his shoulders and looked at him. His eyes and voice were full of understanding as he simply said,

"Worst nightmare, huh, Virg?"

All Virgil could do was nod dumbly.


	17. Chapter 17

_Sorry about that last chapter – it all got a bit intense. So much for my 'be nice to Virgil for a change' story! Thanks to everyone who reviewed or added this story to their alerts list. A special thanks to Loopstagirl for all the support throughout the writing of this and to Math Girl for giving me some great inspiration. I've had a lot of fun writing this and I'm a bit sad it's over. I've got a few ideas for more stories though – including the one about how Gordon managed to break Virgil's nose! Bee_

Chapter Seventeen

In the bungalow, things had finally calmed down as Rob Hall, realising he was well and truly outnumbered, finally gave up the fight. Jeff left him to Scott and came over to kneel beside Virgil, frowning in concern.

"Are you alright, son?"

"Yeah, Dad," Virgil was finally getting himself under control. "I'm okay."

Jeff didn't look convinced. "I want Gordon to take you over to the hospital. I sent you here for a rest, not to be knocked out again. Brains is going to need to open another file for you at this rate."

"Dad, there's no need. I'm fine, honestly. I just want to go and see Amy, make sure she's okay."

Virgil's reluctance to accept he needed to see a doctor came as no surprise and Jeff simply tuned out the objections as he'd done so many times in the past when one of his sons was complaining pointlessly about something.

"Virgil, you're going! Now either Gordon goes with you or I'll take you. And I warn you, if I get talking to those doctors I'm going to insist they admit you. It's your choice."

That shut Virgil up, as he knew it would and he watched as his son allowed Gordon to steer him out of the door towards the golf cart. Why he'd ever sent his boys on this mission he didn't know. Next time they were grounded he was locking them in their rooms on the island. It would be far less stressful for everyone. Then he had a better idea.

"When we get home Brains is going to microchip the lot of you. I can't be doing with this every five minutes. From now on I want to know where you all are every minute of the day."

Realising he'd spoken aloud he braced himself for a barrage of protests from Scott, but to his surprise his son was oblivious, staring down at Rob Hall with a faraway look on his face.

"Scott? Did you hear what I just said?"

"Huh? No, sorry Dad."

"Good!"

* * *

Virgil and Gordon spent the next couple of hours at the hospital. Virgil continued to complain about missing out on the chance to interrogate the man who'd attacked him twice, although his rant was eventually superseded by grumbles over the length of time he had to wait to be seen. Finally however he was given a clean bill of health and allowed to leave.

"Told him there was nothing wrong with me," he said as he headed out through the hospital doors.

"Come on," said Gordon, pushing him towards a waiting taxi. "Let's go and see if they've found the blackmail tapes. We still have International Rescue's security to worry about. If our identity gets out you might be looking for a full-time job at the hotel."

He took Virgil back to Bailey's. On looking for their father and Scott they learned that both were still at the police station. There was no sign of John.

"Why don't you go back to your room for a bit?" Gordon suggested.

Virgil cast him a look of frustration. "I'm going to check on Amy."

With nothing better to do Gordon followed him to Amy's room. She'd been desperately worried and when she saw Virgil she threw herself at him and held him tightly. Virgil returned the embrace with equal enthusiasm. Gordon stood and watched in amusement for a moment before settling himself down in a chair.

"Don't mind me, guys."

Virgil removed one hand from Amy, making it quite clear that he'd like Gordon to leave them in peace.

"Charming! I didn't save your hands just so you could make gestures like that." Gordon didn't move. It was only when Virgil moved backwards, grabbed him by the collar and dragged him towards the door, all without breaking away from Amy that he finally gave up.

"Well, Virg, guess I'll leave you to it then. I'll close the door on my way out shall I?"

With a grin, he left the room and made his way to the pool.

* * *

An hour later Scott and Jeff returned, meeting up with Gordon in Scott and Virgil's room. Jeff still intended to head for home, putting in a call to Alan to come and get them in the family jet.

"How's Virgil?" Scott asked.

"Well, he definitely didn't have a headache when I saw him last," Gordon smirked.

Jeff shot him a quizzical look before deciding he didn't want to know and turning his attention back to business.

"Hall confessed to the attacks on Virgil and admitted to being part of the blackmail ring. But he's refusing to say where the evidence is. Unless we find it we're still in danger of being discovered and a lot of people are going to be left wondering if they'll be blackmailed again."

"He wouldn't give up the tapes?" Gordon asked.

"No," said Scott. "In fact, when we asked him about them he started laughing."

"He nearly fell off his chair he found it so funny, " Jeff agreed. "I don't know boys, there's something we're missing here."

They were all silent for a moment.

"So who's Penny chasing?" Gordon asked.

"He paid one of the fishermen to take his boat. He was supposed to sail around for a couple of days before landing at one of the other islands. Hall just wanted to distract us so he could come back here without suspicion. Come to think of it, Scott, you'd better get onto Penny and tell her what's happened."

When Scott didn't reply immediately, Jeff tried again.

"_Scott!"_

"Huh?" A startled Scott jumped at his father's raised voice.

"What's the matter with you? You've been distracted ever since we caught him."

Scott frowned.

"I've seen him before," he said finally.

"Hall? Where?" Jeff asked.

"That's just it, I can't remember. I just know that when I saw him I had this flash of recognition and then it was gone."

"Well he's been lying low so there aren't that many places you could have seen him," Gordon pointed out. "By the pool, maybe? Somewhere on the grounds?"

Scott shook his head. "It's driving me crazy!"

"What is?" Virgil had just come into the room.

Relieved to see Virgil safe and well, Scott forgot about Rob Hall for a moment. He was reminded when his brother asked again,

"What's going on, Scott?"

"That wasn't the first time I'd seen Rob Hall! I just can't remember where..." A huge grin appeared on his face. "Got it!"

"So where was he?" Gordon asked.

"He came into the ballroom when the band was playing. He was standing near our table, talking to Jason Kerr. I thought at the time Kerr looked annoyed about something – he practically pushed Hall out the door. I just assumed it was a guest who'd had too much to drink. I'd love to know what they were talking about, though. I mean, there must be a reason Hall was out and about that night."

"Didn't you hear anything?" Jeff asked.

"No, they were standing fairly close, but the band was too loud."

"That's a pity," Jeff said. "The more evidence we have against those two the better, especially since we still haven't found their blackmail material."

"There might be a way to find out what they said," Scott mused, glancing across at his middle brother a little uncertainly.

"How?" Virgil asked.

"Well, I transmitted the band's performance to John through my watch so that he could send it on to the island."

"_What_? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Well, you were too nervous before and I didn't want to stress you out even more. Then, afterwards, I thought you'd be annoyed that I hadn't warned you," Scott said reasonably.

"Virgil, you were great, everyone loved it – all your performances," Jeff reassured his son.

"All of them?" Virgil asked.

"Oh yes – I even put Amy on visual when she was sliding all over your piano. I think the boys liked that one the best," Scott grinned.

"Sure did," Gordon agreed. "What did you think, Virg? You used to tell me off for climbing on your piano when we were kids. Bet you didn't complain about Amy."

Virgil went red. He'd liked that song the best too – especially since he'd had a much better view than his brothers! Plus, it brought back memories of later events that he certainly wasn't going to be sharing with Gordon or his father.

"So let's get hold of John and see if he can restore all the background noise he took out before he broadcast it," Jeff said, once again pretending to be ignorant of his middle son's embarrassment as he keyed in the code on his watch.

"Where is John anyway?" Virgil asked.

"No idea," Gordon told him. "I called him after I left you but he didn't seem to want to talk."

The three brothers exchanged knowing looks as John's voice was heard, sounding reluctant as he informed his father he was on his way.

Finally John arrived and set up his equipment. Turning up the background noise as far as it would go, he signalled to the others that he was ready.

"It's not going to be very clear. You'll have to listen carefully."

Sure enough, the sounds of conversation were muffled by the noise of the band, though various voices were decipherable. Straining to hear anything important, they were startled when Virgil suddenly jumped up, almost shouting,

"That's it! Right there!"

"What did they say?" Jeff asked, sure that he hadn't picked up anything relevant.

"Say?" Virgil looked confused. "No one said anything. But I knew I'd missed a cue in that song. I was just a beat behind."

The others looked at each other in amusement. Scott cuffed his brother across the head, quickly apologising when Virgil let out a yelp of pain.

"_Boys!_" his father sighed in exasperation. "Let's start again. And this time, Virgil, concentrate!"

Rubbing the bump on his head and glaring at Scott, Virgil sat back down and John restarted the tape. Finally they heard it – Rob Hall and Jason Kerr discussing the whereabouts of their evidence. John stopped the playback and everyone turned to look at Virgil.

"Oh..." was all he could say.

"So you had it all the time?" Gordon was practically falling off Virgil's bed he was laughing so hard. He couldn't wait to tell Alan about all this. Scott and Virgil hadn't exactly covered themselves with glory on this mission.

"Guess so."

"And you didn't think to look inside our main suspect's music case?" Jeff asked despairingly.

"I did look inside!" Virgil protested. "I was looking for music though, not blackmail material."

"Didn't you have a look, Scott?" John asked.

"Virg said he'd done it," Scott glowered at Virgil as his brother ducked away from him, arms up to protect his head.

"It's a stupid place to hide something anyway," he said sullenly.

Scott sighed. "Virgil, where did you hide _your_ bugging equipment?"

"In my music case..."

"And it didn't occur to you that Rob Hall might have done the same thing?" John shook his head.

"Well, I was nervous about Saturday," Virgil said defensively. "And when Amy brought me Rob's music all I could think about was how it was going to help me with the songs I'd been struggling with. I just took out the music I needed and left it on the piano in the studio. I put it in my own case the next day."

"So what did you do with Rob's case?" Gordon asked.

Virgil thought for a moment before a panicked look appeared on his face. "I, er... I can't remember."

Scott jumped in before Jeff could explode. "You gave it to me to look after."

"And what did _you_ do with it?" Jeff asked wearily, wondering if the music case was ever going to turn up.

"I gave it to Parker," Scott told him. "I guess he must have taken it away with him."

"No he didn't," Gordon said. "He asked me to tell you that he'd found something of yours while he was packing and he'd returned it to your room. I must have forgotten to mention it."

They all looked around the room. Finally their eyes came to rest on Scott's bedside table. Propped up against it was a leather music case.

"We've been sat next to it all this time?" Jeff buried his face in his hands, trying to fight the temptation to start banging his head against the wall.

"Well come on then," said John, reaching over and picking it up. "After all this we're surely not just going to admire the thing."

Handing it to his father he watched as Jeff reached into the front pocket and pulled out a bag. Through the clear plastic they could see a number of memory cards. Each one had a set of initials inked onto it.

Virgil stared at it. "There must be twenty cards in there at least."

"A lot of people are going to be relieved that this is over," Scott commented. "So what do we do? We need to give these to the police if they're going to prosecute Rob and the others."

Jeff opened the bag and tipped the contents out onto Scott's bed. Hunting through them he selected one with the initials WB before handing it to John.

"You'd better make sure this is Bill."

It only took a few seconds to establish that it was indeed the recording of Bill Brand. Extremely thankful to be able to turn it off before things got too involved, Jeff pocketed the card.

"What was the Duchess's grand-daughter's name again?" Virgil asked, sifting through the remainder of the cards.

"Diana King," Scott said, nodding approvingly as Virgil removed the card marked DK.

"Well, it seems our work is done," said Jeff, putting the remaining evidence back in the bag and returning it to the music case. "Gordon, John, we'd better get back home. Scott, Virgil, are you sure you're going to stay on?"

The brothers exchanged glances. "Absolutely," Scott said. "And if you'll excuse me, I'm on duty in ten minutes." He grabbed his kit and with a quick goodbye to his father, John and Gordon, he was gone.

Virgil walked back to the hotel lobby with the others.

"See you in a few days," he said as they prepared to leave.

"Not me," said John. "I'm off back up to Five tomorrow."

"It will be good to get back to normal," Jeff said cheerfully.

"Sure will," Gordon sighed. "The sooner you and Scott are back home the better."

"Do you miss us that much?" Virgil asked in surprise.

"No!" Gordon pulled a face. "I just hate to think of you two having fun while I'm stuck with Dad and Grandma!"

"Hey!" Jeff said, not sure whether he was really insulted or not. "I'll remind you that I still have to agree your leave next week. I'm sure there are a lot of jobs which need doing on the island. I might not be able to spare you."

"Sorry, Dad," Gordon smiled, ruffling his father's hair affectionately, much to Jeff's annoyance. "You know I love you really." He picked up the suitcases and headed over to the taxi which had just pulled up. With a cheerful goodbye to Virgil, John followed him.

"Hm," Jeff said thoughtfully watching Gordon get into the car. "Maybe I'll give him two weeks off not one – give us all a break."

Virgil laughed. "Make it three – and send Alan along too."

Jeff sighed. "It might be a while before Alan gets any leave. Take care, Virgil. And before you come home, make sure you get a haircut – you might look the part here, but our outfit has a reputation to maintain."

Virgil groaned. "I like it like this. Besides, it's not like anyone ever takes my picture."

"Just do it," Jeff instructed. "Or I'll let Grandma do it."

Virgil looked horrified. "Grandma? After all you said when we found those photos of you as a kid! What happened to them anyway? They'd disappeared the next time we looked for them."

Jeff smiled. "I hid them. Just in case Gordon and Alan decided to have some fun with them. I really didn't want to see them in the next issue of the company newsletter. No, you're right. I wouldn't inflict that on you. Though since Alan will be stuck on the island for the time being..."

Virgil stared at him. "You wouldn't? Would you? Actually, I think you should. Remember what he did to me and Scott – all that pain and suffering..."

Jeff laughed. "I thought you were more forgiving than that, Virgil. We'll see. Maybe if he's learned his lesson I'll let him off."

The taxi beeped its horn and Jeff moved towards it. Then a thought struck him and he gave Virgil his watch. "Just in case. Try not to break this one though. See you soon, son."

"Bye, Dad."

Virgil watched as the taxi moved off. Then he headed off to the rehearsal studio. Three more days and now the problems at Bailey's had been resolved he could finally have some real fun.

* * *

Gordon flung his case down in his room, frustrated after failing to extract any information from a smug John as to his escapades at Bailey's. Heading off in search of his younger brother, he knew just what would cheer them both up.

"Hey, Alan. How's it going?" Gordon was surprised to find Alan in his room, apparently tidying up.

"Oh, hi, Gords," Alan shoved a pile of clothes into a drawer and turned to face his brother. "Just thought I'd make sure my room was tidy so Grandma wouldn't have so much to do later."

"Still trying to make up for the other day, huh?" his brother asked. "Dad's calmed down a bit now and Scott and Virg are fine. I guess you might have to take some of their maintenance duties for them for a couple of months, but they'll forgive you."

"I know," Alan sat down on the bed and sighed. "They've been really good about it but I still feel bad."

"Is Tin-Tin talking to you yet?" Gordon asked.

"Well, she's talking, but that's all she's doing right now," Alan said sadly, frowning when Gordon turned away just a little too late to hide the grin which spread across his face. "It's not funny, Gordon! I nearly ruined everything. I tell you, these last few days stuck here with just Tin-Tin, Grandma and Kyrano haven't been a whole lot of fun."

"Well, if it's fun you want..." Gordon turned back, the grin wider than ever. He held out his hand, unclenching his fist to reveal a memory card.

"What's that?" Alan asked. "Gordon, you didn't swipe one of the blackmail tapes, did you?"

"Oh, better than that," his brother told him, heading across to Alan's computer and inserting the device. "This, little brother, is a copy of Scott and Penny's attempts to get the blackmailers' interest. Want to see our Scott in action?"

Alan joined him at the desk. "You're kidding. How did you get hold of that?"

"Penny asked me to get it out of the camera for her. You'd have thought she'd know better, but there you go. I had time to make a copy before I gave the original back." He reached out to press the button which would start the playback, then withdrew his hand.

"You want to do the honours? You could probably do with a good laugh right now."

Alan was silent for a minute. Then he reached out his hand...

"_Alan!_ You deleted it! What did you do that for? I haven't seen it myself yet!"

"Gordon, you're looking at the new, improved Alan Tracy. No more jokes, no more messing around when I should be working." He stared at the screen for a long moment then dropped his head into his hands with a groan.

Gordon sighed. "I'm guessing that right now you're really regretting doing that."

"Yep," Alan moaned. "What was I thinking?"

"You know, I kind of preferred the old Alan. Any chance he might make a comeback? I could use his help planning a 'welcome home' surprise for the boys."

"Well, I reckon I've paid my debt to Scott at least. Tell you what, put in a good word for me with Tin-Tin and I just might give you a hand." He grinned. "You know, Scott doesn't have to know that I deleted it _before_ we watched it..."

Gordon smiled. "Good to have you back! Now, what can we do for Virgil...?"

A few days later Virgil would fail to see the funny side when he found his uniform liberally embellished with sequins. Having to entrust Two to Gordon while he picked them off one by one didn't make him any happier.

But that was several days away. In the meantime Virgil was enjoying his last few days at Bailey's. He had plenty to occupy himself with between the band and Amy. He'd become firm friends with Miguel who, delighted that Rob Hall was permanently out of the picture, had taken the reins of the band with relish. Despite the imminent arrival of a permanent pianist, he still had plenty of new material for Virgil to work on and the two had begun writing a few songs together, something they intended to continue even after Virgil left. Miguel made him promise that he'd play on his first recordings. For his part Virgil was happy to agree – as long as he could get some more leave, of course.

Scott too had enjoyed the last few days of his break from International Rescue, though he had to admit he was more than ready to get back into action. Tactfully leaving Virgil alone to say a last goodbye to Amy, he went over to speak to Connie who had come to see them off. They chatted for a while until Scott finally got bored of waiting for his brother.

"Virg!" he called. "We have to go."

"On my way," his brother replied, making no attempt to detach himself from Amy.

"Will you come on?"

"In a minute."

Connie laughed as Scott sighed resignedly.

"You know, if I didn't know who you two really are I'd offer you both jobs. I don't suppose you're ever going to tell me just how you ended up here?"

"It's a bit complicated," Scott told her. "But it makes a change from the day job."

"Well, I'm very grateful to the pair of you. Penny, too. Anytime you need a break there'll be a room for you here. Well, not that Virgil will need me to provide him with somewhere to stay if he comes back."

Scott looked across at his brother then at his watch.

"We really do have to be going. _Virgil! Come on!"_

Virgil finally broke free of Amy and wandered over, picking up his case.

"Ready?"

"Finally! Let's go."

Settling themselves into their taxi, pulling the glass partition across to give themselves some privacy, they watched as Bailey's faded into the distance, Amy and Connie waving until they were out of sight. Virgil settled himself back into his seat and yawned.

"Tired?" Scott asked.

"Yeah. I'll be glad to get back to the island for a rest."

Scott laughed.

"John says there's a hurricane brewing. You might not get time for a rest."

"Fine by me. Heard from Penny?"

"No. Why would I?"

Virgil shot him an amused glance. "You know, you never told me what went on between you two."

Scott couldn't stop himself going red.

"Come on, Scott. You can tell me. Wouldn't it be good to have someone to talk to?"

"And give you some blackmail material of your own?"

"So there _is_ something I could use to blackmail you?"

"No!"

"Oh well, I'll just have to use my imagination."

Virgil leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. "I've got a vivid imagination, you know," he told his brother. "Very, very vivid..." A wicked smile spread over his face. "Hm, I'd never have thought Penny would- "

"_Stop it!_ Alright, I'll tell you."

Virgil opened his eyes and waited eagerly.

"You promise you won't say anything to the boys?"

"Of course I won't."

"Well, it was all going pretty much according to plan, but then, I don't know, we just-"

An urgent beeping came from their watches and John began outlining details of an imminent disaster, informing them that Alan was on his way to pick them up in Thunderbird One.

"What? _No!"_

Scott, immeasurably relieved at the unexpected rescue, was straight back in command mode, directing a decidedly confused taxi driver to a new destination, this time in the middle of nowhere.

"Sorry, Virg. Maybe later."

Virgil glared at him even as he activated his own watch to berate a startled John. Scott sat back, the smile on his face growing wider as he thought about that night at Bailey's. Virgil could imagine whatever he liked - only he and Penny were ever going to know the truth...


End file.
